1 


MAJOR-GENERAL 


ANTHONY    WAYN  E 


AND 


THE  PENNSYLVANIA  LINE 


IN  THE 


CONTINENTAL    ARMY. 


BY 

CHARLES  J.  STILLE, 

PRESIDENT   OF  THE    HISTORICAL  SOCIETY   OF   PENNSYLVANIA. 


PHILADELPHIA: 

J.    B.    LIPPINCOTT    COMPANY. 

1893. 


Copyright,  1893, 

BY 

Charles  J.  Stille. 


Printed  by  J.  B.  Lippincott  Company,  Philadelphia. 


rt 


PREFACE. 


It  has  often  been  remarked  by  students  of  American 
history  (in  this  part  of  the  country  at  least)  that  in 
both  popular  and  standard  works  on  the  Revolutionary 
and  pre-Revolutionary  eras  there  is  a  singular  failure  to 
give  any  adequate  account  of  the  part  taken  by  Penn- 
sylvania in  the  struggles  of  those  days,  or  of  the  in- 
fluence of  her  statesmen  and  soldiers  in  moulding  the 
national  policy. 

Impressed  with  a  belief  that  such  opinions  are  not 
without  foundation,  and  with  the  hope  of  calling  the 
attention  of  students  to  what  I  venture  to  term  certain 
"lost"  chapters  of  our  American  history,  I  prepared 
some  time  ago  a  biography  of  that  illustrious  Pennsyl- 
vania statesman  John  Dickinson, — a  man  who  for 
various  reasons  is  little  known  to  this  generation,  but 
who,  in  the  formative  period  of  our  history,  so  guided 
the  policy  of  the  country  that  his  controlling  influence 
is  readily  recognized  as  shaping  that  policy  from  the 
date  of  the  Stamp  Act  to  that  of  the  Declaration  of 
Independence. 

With  the  same  object  in  view  I  now  present  another 
chapter  of  that  neglected  history,  that  which  relates  to 
the  achievements  of  a  most  distinguished  soldier  of 
Pennsylvania, — General  Anthony  Wayne. 

The  materials  for  a   memoir  of  General  Wayne, 

iii 

257459 


iv  PREFACE. 


which  are  exceedingly  abundant  and  valuable,  have 
been  preserved  with  great  care  by  his  family,  and  are 
now  deposited  with  the  collections  of  the  Historical 
Society  of  Pennsylvania.  A  study  of  these  papers  has 
enabled  me  to  give  to  the  public  a  full  and,  I  hope,  a 
trustworthy  account  of  the  career  of  General  Wayne. 
These  papers  embrace  copies  of  the  letters  written  by 
him  during  his  campaigns,  or  rather  the  rough  draughts 
of  those  letters,  letters  received  by  him  from  the  most 
eminent  personages  of  the  Revolution,  and  many  other 
documents  illustrating  his  life.  My  object  has  been  to 
allow  these  letters  to  tell  their  own  story,  connecting 
them  only  by  such  an  account  of  the  events  of  the 
time  as  may  seem  necessary  to  explain  the  true  value 
and  character  of  General  Wayne's  achievements  and 
those  of  the  men  he  commanded, — for  the  most  part 
officers  and  soldiers  of  the  Pennsylvania  line. 

On  the  death  of  General  Wayne  in  1 796  his  papers 
passed  into  the  possession  of  his  son,  Colonel  Isaac 
Wayne.  Colonel  Wayne  was  a  man  deeply  imbued 
with  filial  reverence  for  the  memory  of  his  father,  and 
with  a  very  high  conception  of  the  glory  which  he  had 
achieved  by  his  military  exploits.  In  1829  he  printed 
in  a  magazine  called  "The  Casket"  a  brief  memoir  of 
his  father,  illustrated  by  numerous  letters  of  the  general, 
then,  for  the  first  time,  made  public,  which  were  at  once 
recognized  as  extremely  valuable  and  interesting  con- 
tributions to  our  Revolutionary  history.  Not  satisfied 
with  this,  however,  he  asked  at  different  times  two  of 
his  friends,  the  Hon.  Charles  Miner  and  the  Hon. 
Joseph  J.  Lewis,  of  West  Chester,  to  complete  the 
work  which  he  had  begun.     Neither  of  these  gentle- 


PREFACE.  v 

men  seems  to  have  been  able  to  comply  fully  -with  his 
request,  although  it  appears  that  each  of  them  wrote 
portions  of  a  memoir  of  General  Wayne.  The  "  Sup- 
plementary Chapter"  in  this  book  was  prepared  by  Mr. 
Lewis,  and  I  think  no  one  who  reads  it  can  help  feeling 
regret  that  he  did  not  write  "The  Life  of  General 
Wayne"  with  the  same  spirit  which  inspired  this  chapter 
of  it. 

The  only  printed  account  of  any  of  General  Wayne's 
achievements  which  is  fully  illustrated  by  his  own  letters 
is  the  story  of  the  capture  of  Stony  Point  in  1779  by 
the  late  Mr.  Henry  B.  Dawson.  This  work  is  in  the 
shape  of  a  paper  read  before  the  Historical  Society  of 
New  York  in  1863.  It  was  privately  printed, — only 
two  hundred  and  fifty  copies  having  been  struck  off. 
It  seems  to  me  one  of  the  fullest  and  most  satisfactory 
narratives  of  a  great  historical  event  with  which  I  am 
acquainted. 

The  gentlemen  above  named  have  left  their  work 
unfinished.  They  have  given  us  but  a  glimpse  or  an 
outline  of  the  character  and  career  of  our  illustrious 
soldier.  With  the  material  at  my  disposal  I  have  felt  it 
a  duty  which  I  owed  not  only  to  the  memory  of  Gen- 
eral Wayne,  but  also  to  the  reputation  of  the  State 
whose  son  he  was,  to  make  an  effort  to  complete  the 
work  which  others  have  begun,  and  to  portray  the 
general  as  he  appeared  to  our  fathers, — a  typical  hero. 

It  is  much  to  be  regretted  that  the  material  for  il- 
lustrating the  career  of  many  of  the  brave  men  he 
commanded  has  not,  after  diligent  search,  proved  as 
abundant  as  that  which  has  been  preserved  for  bring- 
ing before  us  the  life  of  their  chief. 


vi  PREFACE. 


I  must  express  my  great  obligations  to  the  librarian 
of  the  Historical  Society,  Mr.  F.  D.  Stone,  for  his  care- 
ful supervision  of  the  text  of  my  book,  as  well  as  to 
those  kind  friends  of  the  Society  who  have  aided  me 
in  completing  the  work  while  suffering  from  an  attack 
of  illness. 

March,  1893. 


CONTENTS, 


CHAPTER    I.— (Pages  1-23.) 

EARLY   TRAINING   AND   DISCIPLINE. 

Position  of  General  Wayne  in  American  History,  1.  Sketch  of  his  Family  and 
Character  of  his  Early  Training,  4.  Sent  to  Nova  Scotia  as  a  Surveyor — 
Work  there,  8.  Return  to  Waynesborough,  and  Marriage,  10.  Beginnings 
of  the  Revolution  in  Pennsylvania,  13.  Wayne's  Position  before  the  Out- 
break, 14.  Chester  County  under  his  Leadership,  17.  Raises  a  Battalion 
for  the  Continental  Service,  and  is  appointed  Colonel,  18.  The  Revolutionary 
Sentiment  in  Chester  County,  21-23. 

CHAPTER    1 1.— (Pages  24-59.) 

CANADIAN   CAMPAIGN   AND    TICONDEROGA. 

Efforts  of  Congress  to  secure  the  Sympathy  and  Aid  of  the  Canadians,  25.  The 
Quebec  Act,  26.  Wayne's  Regiment  sent  to  reinforce  Sullivan  and  Arnold, 
28.  Battle  of  the  Three  Rivers,  29.  Wayne's  Conduct  in  the  Retreat,  31. 
The  Army  retires  to  Ticonderoga,  and  Wayne  placed  in  Command,  34. 
Letters  describing  his  Life  there  and  the  Condition  of  the  Garrison,  35-59. 

CHAPTER    III.— (Pages  60-134.) 


Wayne  appointed  Brigadier-General,  60.  Joins  Washington's  Army  at  Morris- 
town,  61.  Organization  of  the  Pennsylvania  Troops  in  that  Army,  62.  The 
Fabian  Policy  of  Washington  at  Morristown,  63.  Condition  of  the  Army, 
64-67.  Political  Condition  of  Pennsylvania,  67-71.  The  British  Army  em- 
bark for  the  Chesapeake,  72.  The  Americans  move  towards  the  Head  of 
that  Bay,  74.  Wayne's  Plan  of  Attack  before  Brandywine,  75.  The  Battle 
of  the  Brandywine,  and  the  Conduct  of  Wayne's  Division  of  the  Pennsylvania 
Line,  77-80.  The  British  move  towards  the  Upper  Fords  of  the  Schuylkill, 
81.  Washington's  Pursuit,  82.  "  Paoli  Massacre,"  and  Wayne's  Defence 
before  the  Court-Martial,  83-92.  The  Battle  of  Germantown,  and  the  Part 
taken  in  it  by  Wayne  and  the  Pennsylvania  Line,  93-98.     Pennsylvania 


viii  CONTENTS. 


Regiments  at  Brandywine  and  Germantown,  98-102.  Siege  and  Defence  of 
Fort  Mifflin,  103-106.  Wayne's  Anxiety  that  more  Active  Measures  should 
be  adopted,  106-112.  Condition  of  Affairs  at  Valley  Forge  during  the 
Winter,  1 12-128.     Foraging  in  New  Jersey,  1 28-134. 

CHAPTER    IV.— {Pages  135-181.) 

MONMOUTH. 

Evacuation  of  Philadelphia  by  the  British  Army,  and  the  Pursuit  of  Washington, 
135-140.  Council  of  War  at  Hopewell,  141.  Wayne's  Letters  to  the  Com- 
mander-in-Chief urging  Active  Measures,  143.  Battle  of  Monmouth,  144- 
154.  Delusions  concerning  the  French  Alliance,  155-158.  Sufferings  of 
the  Army  during  the  Winter  of  1778-79,  159.  Demoralization  of  Congress 
and  the  State  Assembly,  161.  Provisions  made  for  the  Wants  of  the  Army, 
162-165.  Violence  of  Party  Feeling  in  Pennsylvania,  165.  Difficulties 
connected  with  the  Appointment  of  St.  Clair  to  supersede  Wayne  in  Com- 
mand of  the  Pennsylvania  Line,  167-171.  Disputes  about  Rank,  173-179. 
General  Wayne  promised  the  Command  of  a  New  Light  Infantry  Corps, 
180,  181. 

CHAPTER    V.— {Pages  182-210.) 

STONY   POINT. 

Value  of  Stony  Point  as  a  Strategetical  Position,  182-184.  Light  Infantry  Corps 
under  Wayne's  Command — How  made  up,  185.  Reconnoissance  by  Wash- 
ington, and  his  Orders  to  assault  the  Fortress,  186-189.  Wayne's  Order  of 
Battle,  190.  His  Last  Letter  to  Delany,  193.  Assault  and  Capture,  193- 
197.  Special  Military  Qualities  exhibited  by  Wayne  and  his  Troops  on  this 
Occasion,  202-206.     Origin  of  the  Sobriquet  "  Mad  Anthony,"  207-210. 

CHAPTER    VI.— {Pages  211-262.) 
Arnold's  treason,  and  the  revolt  of  the  Pennsylvania  line. 

Attachment  of  the  Officers  of  the  Light  Infantry  to  General  Wayne  as  shown  on 
the  Disbandment  of  the  Corps,  211-215.  Gloomy  Prospects  for  the  Cam- 
paign of  1780,  216.  Expedition  against  the  Block-House  at  Bergen,  219- 
222.  Wayne's  Letters  to  Washington  and  President  Reed  at  this  Crisis,  223. 
Renewed  Disputes  about  Rank,  229-232.  Part  taken  by  the  Pennsylvania 
Line  in  counteracting  the  Effect  of  Arnold's  Treason,  233.  Signs  of  Mutiny 
in  the  Line,  and  Causes  thereof,  239.  Narrative  of  the  Revolt,  242.  Its 
Result,  244.  Substantial  Justice  of  the  Demands  of  the  Soldiers,  246-250. 
Irish- Americans  in  the  Line,  248.  Wayne's  Conduct  during  the  Revolt,  251. 
Correspondence  relating  thereto,  252-262. 


CONTENTS.  ix 


CHAPTER    YIL— (Agar  163-285.) 

VIRGINIA   CAMPAIGN   AND   YORKTOWN. 

Wayne  in  Command  of  a  Detachment  of  the  Line  sent  to  reinforce  General 
Greene  in  South  Carolina,  264.  Mutinous  Spirit  of  the  Soldiers,  265,  266. 
Ordered  to  join  La  Fayette  in  Virginia,  267-270.  Battle  of  Green  Spring, 
271-275.  Washington's  Plans  for  the  Capture  of  Cornwallis,  277-280.  Re- 
ception of  the  French  Allies,  282,  283.  Siege  and  Surrender  of  Yorktown, 
284,  285. 

CHAPTER    VII I.— {Pages  286-299.) 

THE   GEORGIA   CAMPAIGN. 

Wayne  joins  General  Greene  in  South  Carolina,  281.  Sent  to  Georgia  to  estab- 
lish the  Authority  of  the  United  States,  287.  His  Force,  288.  His  Plans 
for  the  Reduction  of  Savannah,  289.  Defeats  the  Garrison  and  the  Indians 
in  their  Attempt  to  form  a  Junction,  288-290.  Wayne's  Strategy  during  the 
Campaign,  291-293.  Evacuation  of  Savannah,  291.  Wayne  appointed  a 
Major-General  by  Brevet,  293-295.  Correspondence  concerning  the  Society 
of  the  Cincinnati,  296,  297.  Disbandment  of  the  Army,  297.  Mutiny  of 
the  Lancaster  Recruits,  and  Conduct  of  Wayne's  Troops  on  their  Return 
Home,  298,  299. 

CHAPTER    IX.— Gftz^  300-314.) 

WAYNE   IN   CIVIL   LIFE. 

Wayne's  Return  to  Pennsylvania — Welcomed  by  his  Old  Friends,  300,  301. 
Elected  a  Member  of  the  Council  of  Censors,  and  his  Course,  301-303. 
Elected  a  Member  of  Assembly  in  1784  and  1785,  303.  His  Course  in  Re- 
gard to  the  Repeal  of  the  Test  and  Confiscation  Acts,  304.  Nature  of  these 
Acts,  305-308.  Financial  Troubles  and  the  Georgia  Plantation,  309-313. 
Wayne  returned. as  a  Member  of.  Congress  from  Georgia,  314. 

CHAPTER    X.— CPtf£*r  315-348.) 

CAMPAIGN   AGAINST   THE   NORTHWESTERN   INDIANS. 

Wayne  appointed  Commander-in-Chief  of  the  Army,  and  Difficulties  of  his  Posi- 
tion, 316.  The  Country  northwest  of  the  Ohio,  and  the  Efforts  made  to 
conciliate  the  Indians  in  Possession  of  it,  317.  Harmar's  Expedition,  318. 
St.  Clair's  Expedition  and  Defeat,  319.  Reorganization  of  the  Army  under 
Wayne — Legion  of  the  United  States,  321.  Wayne's  Preparations  for  a 
Campaign  in  Ohio,  and  Embarrassments,  322-326.     Wayne's  Magnanimous 


CONTENTS. 


Spirit,  327.  Advance  to  Fort  Recovery,  328,  and  to  the  Rapids  of  the 
Miami,  329,  330.  Signal  Victory  over  the  Indians,  331-336.  Fruits  of  the 
Victory — Treaty  of  Greeneville,  337,  338.  Wayne's  Triumphal  Return  to 
Philadelphia,  339,  340.  Effect  of  his  Campaign  on  the  Adoption  of  Jay's 
Treaty,  341.  Wayne  appointed  Commissioner  to  receive  the  Surrender  of 
the  Forts,  342.  His  Sickness  and  Death  at  Presqu'isle,  343,  344.  Inscrip- 
tion on  his  Monument,  345.  General  Sketch  of  his  Character  and  Services, 
346-348. 

SUPPLEMENTARY    C  HAPTER.-(^  349"3730 

Ceremonies  at  the  Reinterment  of  General  Wayne's  Remains  at  St  David's,  350. 
His  Estate,  351-354.  His  Will,  355.  Mr.  Irving's  Estimate  of  Wayne's 
Military  Genius,  356.  Characteristics  of  his  Generalship,  357-360.  His 
Conduct  during  Councils  of  War,  361,  362.  Origin  of  the  Sobriquet  "  Mad 
Anthony,"  364,  365.  General  Sketch  of  Wayne's  Character  and  Peculiari- 
ties as  an  Officer,  365-368.  Colonel  Isaac  Wayne  the  Younger,  370.  His 
Efforts  to  prepare  a  Suitable  Memoir  of  his  Father,  372.  General  Wayne's 
Descendants,  373. 


APPENDICES. 

PAGB 

Appendix  I.  Promotions  in  General  Wayne's  Division,  December  20,  1777  .  375 
"       II.  Arrangement  of  the  Officers  of  the  Pennsylvania  Line  (Wayne's 

Division,  Eight  Regiments),  August,  1778  ....  376 
"      III.  Arrangement  of  the  Officers  of  the  Pennsylvania  Line,  January, 

1 78 1  (Six  Regiments) 383 

"       IV.  Muster-Roil  of  the  Officers  in  the  Legion  of  the  United  States, 

1793 .389 

"        V.  Stony  Point  Documents 396 

"      VI.  Description  of  Medals  voted  by  Congress  for  the  Capture  of 

Stony  Point 416 


MAJOR-GENERAL  WAYNE 


CHAPTER    I. 

EARLY   TRAINING    AND    DISCIPLINE. 

The  renewed  interest  which  has  of  late  been  awa- 
kened in  the  study  of  American  history,  and  especially 
in  the  history  of  the  Revolution,  has  drawn  attention 
to  the  wonderful  career  of  General  Wayne.  By  many 
his  memory  is  cherished  as  that  of  a  popular  idol ;  still, 
not  much  seems  to  be  known  of  his  character  and 
achievements  even  in  his  native  State,  where  his  fame 
should  have  been  preserved  as  a  precious  heritage. 
Some,  it  is  true,  recall  the  strange  sobriquet  of  "  Mad 
Anthony"  by  which  he  was  known  in  his  lifetime,  and 
are  curious  to  know  how  it  happened  that  a  man  who 
accomplished  such  great  deeds  should  have  been  called 
a  madman.  Others  have  not  forgotten  that  he  was  the 
most  brilliant  and  picturesque  figure  in  the  Revolu- 
tionary army,  with  the  possible  exception  of  the  young 
Marquis  de  La  Fayette.  Those  also  who  have  read 
in  the  history  of  the  Revolution  of  the  most  striking 
and  wonderful  exploit  of  the  war,  the  midnight  assault 
of  Stony  Point  under  Wayne's  leadership,  or  of  the 
manner  in  which  he  restored  the  fortunes  of  the  day  at 
Monmouth,  or  of  the  extraordinary  ability  with  which, 
supported  by  an  insignificant  force,  he  contrived  to 
rescue  the  State  of  Georgia  from  the  British  and  their 


MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 


Indian  allies  in  one  campaign  of  three  months'  duration, 
naturally  seek  to  know  something  of  the  character  of  a 
man  whose  life  was  rendered  illustrious  by  these  and 
similar  exploits.  Here  is  a  man  whose  career  extends 
from  fighting  with  well-trained  British  soldiers  in  Can- 
ada to  the  successful  blockade  of  the  English  garrison  at 
Savannah,  from  the  desperate  conflict  at  Monmouth  to 
the  final  conquest  and  subjugation  of  the  Indians  of  the 
Northwest ;  who,  beginning  as  a  surveyor  and  a  simple 
farmer  of  Chester  County,  raised  one  of  the  first  regi- 
ments in  Pennsylvania  for  the  Continental  army,  and 
closed  his  career  twenty  years  later  as  the  General  Com- 
manding-in-Chief  of  the  Armies  of  the  United  States, 
appointed  to  that  high  office  by  Washington  himself; 
yet,  according  to  the  editor  of  the  most  voluminous 
and  accurate  history  of  the  country  which  has  been 
published,  "  his  life  is  yet  to  be  written."  It  seems  that 
the  time  has  come  when  an  effort  should  be  made  to 
portray  him  as  he  really  was,  and  not  as  he  appears  in 
the  popular  legend,  which  in  many  respects  is  mislead- 
ing, and  to  give  some  account  of  his  career,  gathered 
chiefly  from  his  correspondence,  which  presents  his 
career  not  merely  as  a  soldier,  but  as  a  patriot,  in  the 
most  striking  and  attractive  light. 

To  get  a  true  view  of  Wayne's  life,  however,  we  must 
at  the  outset  divest  our  minds  of  certain  prepossessions 
concerning  his  career  which  usually  make  up  the  whole 
of  the  picture  presented  to  us,  but  which  form  in  reality 
only  the  background  of  that  of  which  Wayne  is  the 
central  figure.  There  is  a  general  impression,  for  in- 
stance, that  he  was  simply  a  beau  sabreur, — a  sort  of 
reckless  dare-devil,  who  could  be  relied  upon,  and  was 


EARLY  TRAINING  AND  DISCIPLINE.  3 

at  all  times  called  upon,  to  lead  with  unshrinking  cour- 
age the  most  desperately  dangerous  operations.  People 
forget  that  he  many  times  proved  to  the  satisfaction  of 
his  great  chief  not  merely  that  he  was  impetuous  in 
action,  but  that  while  he  was  quick  in  conception  and 
prompt  in  execution  he  was  most  cautious  and  careful 
in  preparation  and  unfailing  in  resources.  If  we  are  to 
judge  Wayne  simply  as  an  intrepid  leader  for  whom 
personal  danger  had  a  certain  positive  charm,  and  not 
as  a  great  soldier  possessing  that  rare  combination  of 
qualities  which  go  to  make  up  the  illustrious  gen- 
eral, we  shall  fall  into  great  error.  We  might  as  well 
regard  Sheridan,  for  instance,  as  he  restored  the  for- 
tunes of  the  day  and  rallied  his  army  in  the  valley  of 
the  Shenandoah,  as  having  thereby  established  his  fame 
as  a  great  general,  or  judge  Grant  as  a  general  by 
the  brilliant  operations  which  led  to  the  surrender  of 
Donelson. 

The  very  brilliancy  of  Wayne's  reputation  as  a  fight- 
ing general  has  somewhat  blinded  the  eyes  of  his  coun- 
trymen to  those  military  qualities  which  he  possessed 
in  common  with  all  great  soldiers.  For  the  moment  it 
is  only  necessary  to  say  that  no  important  strateget- 
ical  movement  was  undertaken  by  Washington  while 
Wayne  was  under  his  command  without  consulting 
him.  His  illustrious  chief  knew  that  he  could  trust 
him  thoroughly  for  the  execution  of  his  part  in  any  plan 
assigned  to  him,  for  his  Heart  was  in  his  work ;  every 
faculty  of  his  mind  was  bent  to  its  accomplishment,  and 
he  never  disappointed  those  who  trusted  him. 

The  career  of  General  Wayne  has  for  us  in  this 
State  a  special  interest.     Not  only  is  his  fame  part  of 


MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 


the  heritage  of  glory  in  achieving  our  national  inde- 
pendence of  which  we,  as  Pennsylvanians,  may  justly 
claim  our  share,  but  we  can  never  forget  that  his  great 
deeds  were  achieved  by  the  aid  of  the  men  of  Pennsyl- 
vania, whom  he  had  trained  as  soldiers,  and  who,  under 
his  command,  throughout  the  Revolution  formed  a 
corps  d' elite  in  the  American  army  called  "  the  Pennsyl- 
vania line."  The  services  of  these  men,  rendered  with 
a  courage  which  never  failed  amidst  all  the  dangers 
and  trials  of  the  Revolutionary  campaigns,  have  been 
in  a  great  measure  unchronicled,  or  the  story  is  told  in 
documents  and  correspondence  which  have  never  been 
printed.  It  seems  that  the  present  is  a  fit  time,  when, 
as  we  have  said,  a  new  interest  appears  to  have  been 
aroused  in  our  Revolutionary  history,  that  an  effort 
should  be  made  to  do  away  with  that  self-reproach 
which  always  oppresses  us  as  we  stand  over  the  graves 
of  our  forgotten  heroes  and  strive  to  bring  before  our 
minds  a  true  picture  of  the  deeds  of  those  who  suffered 
and  died  that  we  might  live.  Surely  State  pride,  if  not 
reverence  for  their  memory,  founded  upon  gratitude 
for  their  services,  should  teach  us  to  honor  these  men 
by  recounting  their  achievements  as  well  as  those  of 
their  intrepid  leader. 

The  family  of  Wayne  was  originally  of  English 
stock,  and  at  the  time  of  the  outbreak  of  the  Revolu- 
tion it  had  been  seated  for  three  generations  in  Ches- 
ter County.  The  grandfather  of  the  general  during 
the  reign  of  Charles  II.  had  removed  his  family  from 
Yorkshire  and  had  taken  possession  of  an  estate  in 
the  County  Wicklow  in  Ireland.  He  was  a  Protes- 
tant, and  joined  the  forces  of  William  of  Orange  in  his 


EARLY  TRAINING  AND  DISCIPLINE.  5 

contest  with  King  James  II.  He  commanded  a  troop 
of  dragoons  in  the  service  of  King  William  at  the 
battle  of  the  Boyne,  and  he  greatly  distinguished  him- 
self by  his  gallantry  in  that  decisive  battle.  It  is  said 
that  the  ancestor  of  General  William  Irvine,  Wayne's 
distinguished  Lieutenant,  had  been  an  officer  in  the 
same  battle.  Wayne  was  not  of  the  race  called,  in 
our  classification  of  the  population  of  Pennsylvania,  the 
Scotch-Irish,  as  were  so  many  of  his  friends  and  neigh- 
bors in  Chester  County,  Wicklow  being  a  part  of  Ire- 
land into  which  the  translated  Scotch  never  penetrated. 
For  some  reason  which  it  is  now  impossible  to  explain, 
his  grandfather  gave  up  his  estate  in  Ireland  and  came 
to  Pennsylvania  in  1722,  one  of  the  years  in  which  a 
great  tide  of  Scotch-Irish  emigration  flowed  in  upon  us 
from  the  northern  part  of  that  kingdom.  The  elder 
Wayne  brought  with  him  four  sons,  who  are  said  to 
have  been  carefully  educated  at  home,  and  with  them,  it 
would  appear,  a  considerable  worldly  substance.  In  the 
year  1724  he  purchased  an  estate  in  Chester  County 
of  nearly  sixteen  hundred  acres  on  the  border  of  that 
most  beautiful  of  valleys,  the  great  valley  of  that  county, 
which  he  called  Waynesborough.  Upon  his  death  this 
estate  was  divided  among  his  sons ;  his  youngest,  Isaac, 
the  father  of  the  future  general,  receiving  as  his  share 
about  five  hundred  acres,  which,  by  a  strange  coinci- 
dence, lay  near  by  the  spot  known  in  after-years  as  the 
scene  of  the  Paoli  massacre.  Isaac  Wayne  is  described 
as  having  been  a  man  of  strong  mind  and  of  great  in- 
dustry and  enterprise.  He  frequently  represented  the 
county  of  Chester  in  the  Provincial  Assembly,  and  as  a 
commissioned  officer  distinguished  himself  in  expedi- 


MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 


tions  against  the  Indians.1  After  a  long  life  of  useful- 
ness to  his  country,  to  his  family,  and  to  his  friends,  he 
died  in  1774,  leaving  one  son  and  two  daughters.2  His 
only  son,  Anthony,  was  born  at  Waynesborough,  in  the 
township  of  Easttown,  in  Chester  County,  on  the  1st 
of  January,  1 745. 

Of  Anthony  Wayne  it  may  be  said,  if  it  can  be  truly 
said  of  any  one,  that  he  was  born  with  the  instinct  of 
a  soldier.  He  had  all  his  mother's  force  of  character 
and  his  fathers  love  for  military  adventure  and  enter- 
prise. He  seems  from  the  first  to  have  been  a  manly 
and  self-reliant  boy,  although  hardly  taking  kindly  to 
the  course  of  instruction  designed  for  him  by  his  father. 
His  uncle  Gilbert,  whose  pupil  he  was,  found  that  he 
had  little  taste  for  the  study  of  the  ancient  languages, 
then,  as  it  is  now,  the  basis  of  all  truly  liberal  educa- 
tion, but  that  he  made  great  progress  in  the  elementary 
mathematics.  As  a  boy  his  ambition  seems  to  have 
been  to  lead  the  life  and  do  the  work  of  a  soldier.  His 
uncle  writes  to  his  father,  "  What  he  may  be  best  quali- 
fied for  I  know  not.  He  may  perhaps  make  a  soldier. 
He  has  already  distracted  the  brains  of  two-thirds  of  the 
boys  under  my  charge  by  rehearsals  of  battles,  sieges, 
etc.  During  noon,  in  place  of  the  usual  games  and 
amusements,  he  has  the  boys  employed  in  throwing  up 

1  Captain  Isaac  Wayne  was  a  captain  in  the  Provincial  service, 
commissioned  by  Governor  Morris,  and  was  stationed  during  the 
winter  of  1756  first  at  Nazareth  and  afterwards  at  Fort  Allen.  He 
married  Elizabeth,  daughter  of  Richard  Iddings,  of  Chester  County, 
who  is  spoken  of  as  a  woman  of  remarkable  force  and  earnestness  of 
character. 

2  Moore's  Life  of  Wayne,  p.  8. 


EARLY  TRAINING  AND   DISCIPLINE.  7 

redoubts,  skirmishing,  etc."  Thus  early  did  the  hero 
of  Stony  Point  show  the  unmistakable  bent  of  his 
genius.  We  may  remember  that  many  generals  in 
embryo,  Napoleon  foremost  of  them  all,  have  been 
distinguished  in  their  boyhood  by  just  such  decided 
tastes ;  moreover,  that  the  preference  of  such  boys 
has  generally  been  for  mathematical  rather  than  for 
classical  studies. 

Wayne's  wise  father,  while  probably  recognizing  the 
very  strong  bent  of  his  son's  mind  for  a  military  life, 
was  perfectly  aware  that  no  such  career  was  open  in 
the  British  army  for  a  provincial  without  a  home  influ- 
ence such  as  he  could  not  command.  He  therefore 
made  up  his  mind  to  try  once  more  to  train  him  in  clas- 
sical studies.  He  was  accordingly  sent,  when  sixteen 
years  old,  to  the  Academy  in  Philadelphia,  no  doubt 
with  the  expectation  that  a  change  of  school  studies 
would  bring  about  a  change  of  tastes.  Apparently  the 
hoped-for  result  was  not  attained.1  His  fondness  for 
an  out-of-door  life  and  for  mathematical  studies  was  at 
this  time  his  strong  characteristic,  and  led  him  at  last, 
as  his  hopes  of  becoming  a  soldier  vanished,  to  adopt 
the  profession  of  a  surveyor.  In  those  days  this  occu- 
pation resembled  in  this  country  more  nearly  that  of  a 
soldier  than  any  other,  and  the  adventurous  life  which 
the  surveyor  was  forced  to  lead  in  the  wilderness  in 
the  practice  of  his  profession,  the  discipline  in  which  he 
was  trained  by  the  dangers,  hardships,  and  constant 
vigilance  which  made  up  part  of  his  daily  occupation, 
formed  an  excellent  preparation  for  his  future  work  as 

1  His  name  is  not  found  among  those  of  the  matriculates  of  the 
Academy. 


MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 


a  soldier.  Such  was  the  school  in  which  Washington 
was  trained,  and  in  it  Wayne  acquired  the  qualities  of 
a  true  soldier.  In  those  days  the  country  in  which  the 
surveyor  was  called  upon  to  do  his  work  of  tracing 
courses  and  distances  and  settling  boundaries  was  for  the 
most  part  a  dense  and  untrodden  forest,  often  occupied 
by  hostile  Indians.  While  thus  in  the  performance  of 
his  duty  he  led  a  life  of  constant  exposure  and  hard- 
ship, his  body  became  hardened  and  disciplined,  and 
his  mind  ready  and  resourceful  in  times  of  difficulty. 

Young  Wayne  seems  to  have  gained  reputation  as  a 
surveyor  rapidly.  We  find  that  before  he  was  twenty- 
one  years  old  he  was  employed  to  survey  and  settle — 
that  is,  to  colonize — two  vast  tracts  of  wild  lands  which 
had  been  purchased  by  Dr.  Franklin  and  his  associ- 
ates, capitalists  in  Philadelphia,  in  Nova  Scotia.  No 
better  proof  could  be  given  of  the  character  which  he 
had  already  established  than  that  he,  a  mere  boy  in 
years,  should  have  been  employed  upon  such  an  errand 
of  colonization  by  a  man  as  sagacious  as  Dr.  Franklin. 
These  lands  had  been  purchased  in  1765  under  the  im- 
pression that  the  peace  of  1763  opened  a  large  and 
profitable  field  of  English  enterprise  in  that  quarter.1 

Wayne  was  sent  to  Nova  Scotia  by  these  gentlemen 
not  merely  to  survey  their  lands  and  to  fix  their  bound- 

1  It  appears  from  the  records  of  the  Crown  Land  Office  at  Hali- 
fax that  on  the  31st  of  October,  1765,  a  grant  passed  under  the  seal 
of  the  Province  for  one  hundred  thousand  acres  on  the  St.  John's 
River  to  Alexander  McNutt,  Matthew  Clarkson,  Edward  Duffield, 
Gerardus  Clarkson,  John  Nagle,  Benjamin  Franklin,  Anthony- 
Wayne,  and  various  others,  and  on  the  same  day  a  grant  was  made 
to  the  same  parties  of  one  hundred  thousand  acres  on  the  Piti- 
coodzack  River. 


EARLY  TRAINING  AND  DISCIPLINE.  9 

aries,  but  also  to  establish  upon  them  a  colony  of  set- 
tlers who  would  cultivate  them, — a  most  remarkable 
proof,  as  we  have  said,  of  the  confidence  which  Wayne 
as  a  young  man  was  able  to  inspire.  Of  course 
Nova  Scotia  at  that  time  was  an  untracked  and  un- 
known wilderness,  and  it  speaks  well  for  Wayne's 
courage  and  adventurous  spirit  that  he  was  willing 
to  embark  on  so  formidable  an  undertaking.  We  are 
unfortunately  without  the  means  of  knowing  the  course 
he  pursued  in  overcoming  the  obstacles  which  were 
interposed  in  the  way  of  performing  the  duties  assigned 
to  him,  but  it  is  very  clear  that  he  could  only  have 
maintained  himself  at  all  in  his  position  by  the  exercise 
of  great  force  of  character.  As  the  agent  of  the  com- 
pany he  seems  to  have  justified  the  confidence  reposed 
in  him.  The  following  are  the  points  recommended  to 
this  boy  to  be  observed,  by  the  principal  agent  of  the 
associates,  Mr.  John  Hughes,  a  great  favorite  of  Dr. 
Franklin's,  who  had  been  appointed  through  the  Doc- 
tor's influence  distributor  of  stamps  for  this  district. 
He  was  told  to  ascertain  whether  "the  land  proposed  to 
be  bought  and  settled  upon  was,  1.  Good  &  supplied 
with  navigable  waters.  2.  To  observe  where  were  the 
heads  of  navigation  in  Rivers,  that  is,  the  tide.  3.  Con- 
venient places  for  ferries.  4.  Passes  through  the  moun- 
tains. 5.  Iron  ore  &  cole  mines.  6.  Mill  Seats  & 
other  waterworks.  7.  Places  where  the  roads  meet. 
8.  Beaches  or  islands  with  black  sand  washed  up.  9. 
Mast  lands  or  pure  swamps.  10.  Lime  stone  or  other 
stones.  11.  Meadow  lands  and  marsh.  12.  Large 
Springs  or  any  mineral  Springs."  A  pretty  extensive 
catalogue  of  subjects  to  be  investigated  and  reported 


io  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

upon  by  a  boy,  even  if  he  was  as  promising  as  young 
Wayne. 

In  the  course  of  a  year  he  had  not  only  made  a  first 
survey  of  the  lands,  but  had  led  into  the  wilderness 
and  settled  in  their  new  home  a  colony  abundantly  pro- 
vided with  implements  of  husbandry  and  provisions. 
He  continued  in  charge  of  this  settlement  until  1767, 
when  the  company,  finding,  it  is  said,  its  operations 
menaced  by  the  controversy  which  had  arisen  between 
the  mother-country  and  the  Colonies,  abandoned  its 
scheme  of  colonization.  It  is  worth  while  to  recall  this 
period  of  Wayne's  early  life,  for  what  he  went  through 
during  the  two  years  he  was  engaged  in  this  work 
proved  invaluable  in  the  military  career  he  was  des- 
tined to  follow. 

Having  given  up  his  position  as  superintendent  of 
the  Nova  Scotia  lands  and  returned  home,  he  was  mar- 
ried in  May,  1766,  to  the  daughter  of  Mr.  Bartholomew 
Penrose,  a  prominent  merchant  of  Philadelphia.  From 
that  time  until  the  outbreak  of  the  Revolution  he  culti- 
vated his  farm  at  Waynesborough,  and  established,  be- 
sides, an  extensive  tannery  upon  it.  He  was  regarded 
by  his  neighbors,  young  as  he  was,  owing  to  his  exten- 
sive experience,  as  an  expert  surveyor,  whose  profes- 
sional opinion  upon  the  various  perplexing  questions 
which  arise  in  a  newly-settled  country  in  regard  to 
boundaries  was  received  as  of  final  authority.  During 
these  years  he  grew  in  the  affections  and  confidence  of 
his  neighbors,  and  was  recognized  as  a  leader  among 
a  population  of  unusual  intelligence  and  public  spirit. 
He  was  chosen  to  fill  several  unimportant  county  offices, 
and  when  the  first  murmur  of  resistance  to  the  minis- 


EARLY  TRAINING  AND  DISCIPLINE.  n 

terial  measures  was  heard  in  1774,  his  counsel  was  re- 
garded as  that  of  a  recognized  interpreter  of  public 
opinion  in  Chester  County.  His  father  died  during 
this  year,  and  he  is  spoken  of  in  the  address  of  con- 
dolence sent  by  the  officers  of  the  regiment  which  the 
son  was  then  organizing,  as  a  "man  conspicuously 
friendly  to  the  great  cause  now  depending  between 
Great  Britain  and  her  Colonies.'*  From  this  address, 
and  from  other  circumstances,  we  may  infer  that  the 
father  was  a  shining  example  of  that  patriotic  devotion 
with  which  the  son's  whole  career  was  inspired.  The 
death  of  his  father,  of  course,  brought  new  duties  and 
responsibilities  to  the  future  general.  His  inheritance 
increased  his  stake  in  the  country's  destiny,  but  neither 
the  responsibilities  which  he  incurred  by  the  course  of 
action  which  he  pursued,  nor  the  dangers  which  men- 
aced his  private  interests,  cooled  for  a  moment  the  en- 
thusiasm with  which  he  resisted  the  claims  of  ministerial 
oppression. 

The  immediate  cause  of  the  outbreak  of  the  Revolu- 
tion was,  it  will  be  remembered,  the  retaliatory  meas- 
ures taken  by  the  British  Ministry  to  punish  the  town 
of  Boston  for  the  destruction  of  the  tea  sent  thither 
in  December,  1773,  and  the  refusal  of  its  people  to 
make  any  compensation  to  the  East  India  Company 
for  the  loss  thereby  incurred.  The  method  taken  by 
the  Bostonians  of  protesting  against  sending  taxable 
tea  to  that  place,  by  permitting  a  mob  to  throw  it  into 
the  harbor,  and  afterwards  refusing  to  compensate  the 
owners  of  the  tea  for  its  loss,  was  not  generally  ap- 
proved by  the  malcontents  outside  of  New  England, 
or,  indeed,  even  outside  of  Boston  itself.     The  country 


12  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

had  been  practically  unanimous  in  its  opposition  to  the 
measures  which  had  led  the  Ministry  to  permit  the  ex- 
portation of  the  tea  to  this  country,  and  in  all  the  Colo- 
nies on  the  sea-coast  arrangements  had  been  made  to 
prevent  an  attempt  to  land  it  and  to  enforce  its  with- 
drawal. The  object  of  the  patriots  at  this  time  was  to 
keep  strictly  within  the  limits  of  law  and  order,  hoping 
thereby  that  their  petitions  for  a  redress  of  grievances 
would  be  more  readily  listened  to.  The  riotous  conduct 
of  the  mob  in  Boston  disappointed  these  hopes,  and  the 
destruction  of  the  tea  and  the  refusal  of  compensation 
were  regarded  as  "  untoward  events"  by  meetings  held 
throughout  Pennsylvania,  as  well  as  by  the  Assembly  of 
that  Province.  The  steadiness  of  the  people  here  in 
their  opposition  to  the  measures  of  the  Ministry  was 
not  affected  by  these  proceedings.  Still  less  was  there 
any  disposition  manifested  to  follow  the  example  of 
Boston.  We  had  in  Philadelphia  prevented  the  landing 
of  the  tea  sent  to  this  port  in  a  different  way. 

It  is  most  important,  in  order  to  understand  the  course 
of  the  events  in  the  early  history  of  the  Revolution,  to 
remember  that  different  sections  of  the  country  were 
led  into  the  revolt  by  different  motives,  and  that  they  had 
different  objects  which  they  hoped  to  accomplish  by  it. 
Thus,  the  destruction  of  the  tea  was  not  regarded  here, 
as  we  are  told  it  was  in  Boston,  by  the  latest  New  Eng- 
land writer  of  American  history,1  as  a  "  colossal  event" 
and  as  "the  most  magnificent  movement  of  all,"  but 
rather,  so  far  as  the  influence  of  such  acts  upon  the 
most  important  of  all  questions  of  that  time  was  con- 

1  See  Fiske's  American  Revolution,  vol.  i.  p.  85. 


EARLY  TRAINING  AND  DISCIPLINE.  13 

cerned,  the  union  of  the  Colonies  in  opposition  to  the 
Ministry,  as  constituting  a  stupendous  blunder.  We 
had  no  intention  here,  at  least,  to  vindicate  what  is 
called  "the  supreme  assertion  of  the  most  fundamental 
principle  of  political  freedom"  in  this  way. 

Still,  here,  as  in  all  parts  of  the  country,  there  was 
deep  sympathy  for  the  distress  into  which  Boston  had 
been  plunged  by  the  riotous  conduct  of  some  of  her 
people.  She  was  punished,  as  is  well  known,  by  every 
means  which  the  ingenuity  of  the  Ministry  could  devise 
u  to  chastise  her  insolence,"  as  it  was  called.  She 
suffered  all  the  evils  incidental  to  a  modern  state  of 
siege,  which,  to  a  commercial  town  like  Boston,  meant 
ruin.  It  was  felt  that  she  was  indeed  suffering  in  the 
common  cause,  and  people  here,  without  stopping  to 
inquire  how  much  of  all  this  was  due  to  her  own  act, 
felt  that  the  best  method  of  relieving  her  was  to  send 
her  provisions  in  her  distress  and  to  urge  the  repeal  of 
the  Acts  of  Parliament  which  had  made  such  a  state 
of  things  possible. 

In  Philadelphia  in  the  June  of  that  year  (1774)  a 
town  meeting  was  held  in  which  such  was  the  line  of 
opposition  to  the  ministerial  measures  marked  out. 
Committees  of  Correspondence  and  of  Safety  were 
named,  and  vigorous  efforts  were  made  to  organize 
the  popular  sentiment  of  the  Province  in  a  constitu- 
tional opposition  to  the  acts  of  the  Ministry.  The 
attempt  was  successful.  The  Assembly  in  September, 
1774,  although  many  Quakers  were  members  of  it, 
with  surprising  unanimity  adopted  the  Whig  policy  of 
asking  for  a  redress  of  grievances,  and  the  first  Con- 
tinental Congress  in  its  proceedings  pursued  the  same 


i4  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE, 

policy,  although  it  was  induced  by  a  false  rumor  of  the 
bombardment  of  Boston  by  General  Gage  to  promise 
to  support  her  cause  by  force. 

The  policy  adopted  during  the  summer  of  1774  in 
Philadelphia  was  quickly  responded  to  from  all  parts 
of  the  Province.  Nowhere  was  the  counsel  which  the 
leaders  in  that  city  had  given  more  quickly  followed 
than  in  Chester  County,  and  in  no  man  in  that  county 
was  the  determination  to  resist  the  action  of  the 
Ministry  with  arms  in  his  hands,  if  necessary,  more 
completely  embodied  than  in  Anthony  Wayne.  He 
was  emphatically  the  leader  of  the  opponents  to  the 
ministerial  acts.  He  was  chairman  of  the  County 
Committee  which  proposed  the  resolutions  condemning 
the  course  of  the  Ministry  adopted  by  the  freemen  of 
that  county  on  the  13th  of  July,  1774.  He  was  also 
chairman  of  the  committee  appointed  to  carry  out  the 
recommendations  of  the  Assembly  in  reference  to  a 
military  organization  and  non-importation  agreement ; 
he  was  a  member  of  the  Provincial  Convention  which 
met  in  January,  1775,  to  encourage  domestic  manufac- 
tures in  anticipation  of  the  effect  of  the  non-importation 
of  English  goods ;  he  was  the  author  of  the  propo- 
sition in  May,  1775,  that  the  freemen  of  the  county 
should  be  organized  for  military  purposes.  In  June 
he  became  one  of  the  members  of  the  Provincial  Com- 
mittee of  Safety,  in  July  a  member  of  the  Provincial 
Convention,  and  in  October  a  member  of  the  Com- 
mittee of  Correspondence.  He  was  put  forward  in 
December  by  his  friends  as  a  proper  person  to  repre- 
sent his  county  in  the  Assembly  for  the  next  year. 
During  the  whole  of  this  busy  year,  and  while  engaged 


EARLY  TRAINING  AND  DISCIPLINE.  15 

in  these  methods  of  organizing  the  opposition,  he  was 
occupied  also  in  recruiting  a  regiment  in  Chester  for 
the  Continental  service,  in  pursuance  of  the  Act  of 
Congress  calling  upon  Pennsylvania  for  her  quota  of 
troops.  By  the  close  of  the  year  the  ranks  of  this 
regiment  (Fourth  Battalion)  were  filled,  and  on  the 
recommendation  of  the  Committee  of  Safety  he  was, 
on  the  3d  of  January,  1776,  appointed  its  colonel,  and 
Francis  Johnston  its  lieutenant-colonel. 

Wayne  at  this  period  must  have  been  a  singularly 
attractive  person,  very  unlike  the  commonplace  people 
who  at  that  time  made  up  an  average  farming  com- 
munity. Everything  about  him  seemed  calculated  to 
draw  public  attention  to  him  and  to  render  him  popular, 
as  it  is  called,  in  the  community  in  which  he  lived.  He 
was  just  thirty  years  of  age,  a  handsome,  manly  figure, 
and  free  and  bold  in  the  outspoken  declaration  of  his 
opinions.  He  was  a  man  of  better  education  and  of  a 
wider  knowledge  of  the  world  than  most  of  his  neigh- 
bors, and  this  superiority  was  recognized  by  them.  He 
inspired  confidence  and  gained  adherents  whenever  he 
expressed  his  political  opinions.  He  was  known  by 
all  (a  great  point  then,  as  it  is  now)  to  be  absolutely 
disinterested.  We  can  recall  but  two  of  the  higher 
officers  of  the  army  who  served  throughout  the  war, 
General  Washington  and  the  Marquis  de  La  Fayette, 
who  left  larger  private  fortunes  to  risk  all  in  the  public 
cause  than  General  Wayne.1     Removed  in   this  way 

1  The  following  memorandum  was  found  on  one  of  General 
Wayne's  ledgers,  dated  March,  178:4:  "Mr.  Shannon  has  sunk  for 
me  since  the  beginning  of  January  1776,  upwards  of  ^2400  in  stock, 
exclusive  of  the  interest  for  near  eight  years.      Had  he  managed  my 


1 6  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

from  any  temptation  to  seek  public  office  from  sordid 
motives,  he  was  trusted  throughout  the  war  by  all 
whom  he  led, — his  neighbors  and  townsmen  as  well 
as  his  soldiers.  Certainly  in  the  military  family  of  no 
other  general  of  the  army  was  there  to  be  seen  such  an 
affectionate  intercourse  as  existed  between  Wayne  and 
his  subordinates. 

He  had,  of  course,  his  failings  and  his  weaknesses, 
conspicuous  even  in  his  early  manhood.  He  seems  to 
have  been  constitutionally  a  vain  man,  and  to  have  ex- 
pressed himself  from  the  beginning  too  often  in  an 
over-confident  and  boastful  style,  which  was  not  always 
in  good  taste.  Vanity  is  usually  combined  with  offensive 
pretension,  but  Wayne  all  through  his  life  was  the  type 
of  truth,  honor,  and  frankness ;  and  it  may  be  remem- 
bered, too,  that  a  good  deal  of  his  manner  was  due  to  a 
certain  impetuous  eagerness  and  impatience  of  nature 
which  did  not  allow  him  always  to  measure  his  words. 
Of  his  perfect  sincerity  when  he  assumed  this  tone 
(which  he  did  only  when  he  proposed  daring  and 
hazardous  deeds)  there  could  be  no  doubt.  His  pe- 
culiarity was  so  well  known  in  the  army  that  he  was 
never  thought  of  merely  as  boastful  when  he  adopted 
it,  but  simply  it  was  looked  upon  as  his  method  of 
urging  desperate  plans  which  seemed  perfectly  feasible 
to  his  ardent  and  impetuous  temper.  People  may  have 
laughed  at  his  manner,  but  no  one  ever  thought  that 
he  was  less  terribly  in  earnest  in  any  scheme  which  he 
proposed  because  he  used  the  language  of  hyperbole. 

stock  in  trade  to  the  advantage  which  others  have  done  in  the  course 
of  the  late  war,  I  ought  to  have  had  at  a  moderate  computation  seven 
thousand  pounds  in  stock  in  place  of  nothing.  A.  W." 


EARLY  TRAINING  AND  DISCIPLINE.  17 

The  record  of  the  life  of  a  man  during  the  year  of 
the  outbreak  of  hostilities  who  afterwards  occupied  so 
prominent  a  position  in  the  public  service  as  did  Wayne 
is  indeed  a  most  interesting  and  instructive  one.  It 
not  only  proves  the  depth  and  earnestness  of  his  polit- 
ical convictions  and  the  energy  with  which  he  main- 
tained them,  but  also  exhibits  the  methods  by  which 
the  armed  opposition  to  the  home  government  in  this 
Province  was  organized  under  Wayne's  direction.  It 
will  be  observed  that  at  the  beginning  of  the  year  1776 
there  were  soldiers  of  two  distinct  kinds  raised  in  Penn- 
sylvania. The  one  was  composed  of  battalions  of  "  As- 
sociators,"  so  called,  in  the  Provincial  service,  the  organ- 
ization of  which  resembled  that  of  the  militia  of  the  other 
Colonies,  except  that  the  men  composing  the  battalions 
were  all  volunteers.  Of  these  battalions,  fifty-three 
had  been  raised  by  this  time  in  Pennsylvania,  of  which 
five  came  from  Chester  County.  There  were,  besides, 
regiments  enlisted  here  for  the  Continental  service,  and 
they  differed  from  the  Provincial  battalions  chiefly  in 
this,  that  the  men  were  to  serve  for  a  longer  term,  that 
the  discipline  was  stricter  and  more  regular,  and  that 
they  were  directly  under  the  authority  of  Congress.  In 
Chester  County  such  was  the  patriotic  ardor  of  the 
people  that  during  the  year  1775  the  ranks  of  both  the 
Provincial  and  the  Continental  battalions  were  rapidly 
filled.  Of  the  five  battalions  of  Associators  raised  there, 
commanded  by  Colonels  Moore,  Hockley,  Lloyd,  Mont- 
gomery, and  Thomas,  three  were  present  at  the  battle 
of  Long  Island.  They  were  stationed  in  the  advance 
on  both  flanks  of  the  army,  with  the  Pennsylvania  regi- 
ments of  Atlee  and  Miles,  and  although  they  were  nearly 

3 


18  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

cut  to  pieces  and  many  of  the  survivors  were  captured, 
they  displayed  a  steadiness  and  courage  in  maintaining 
their  position  against  overwhelming  numbers  which 
excited  the  admiration  of  the  army.  Caleb  Parry,  a 
Chester  County  man,  and  lieutenant-colonel  in  Atlee's 
regiment,  who  was  killed  in  this  battle,  is  said  to 
have  been  the  protomartyr  of  the  Revolution  among 
the  Pennsylvania  officers. 

As  Wayne  was  recognized  as  a  leader  by  the  pa- 
triotic men  of  his  county,  he  was  chosen  by  the  Com- 
mittee of  Safety,  without  hesitation,  colonel  of  the  regi- 
ment which  he  had  done  so  much  to  raise.  He  was 
known  to  all  as  a  man  of  high  character  and  of  consid- 
erable substance,  who  at  a  great  sacrifice  had  proved 
his  patriotic  zeal  by  outspoken  acts  of  resistance  to  the 
Ministry,  and  whose  loyal  and  persistent  devotion  to 
the  cause  through  good  report  and  evil  report  might  be 
confidently  expected.  He  and  the  officers  of  his  regi- 
ment seem  to  have  been  animated  by  the  same  spirit 
during  the  war.  Many  of  his  subordinates  became 
famous  for  their  gallantry  during  the  Revolutionary 
campaigns  as  officers  in  the  Pennsylvania  line.  Johns- 
ton, Wood,  Robinson,  Frazer,  Moore,  North,  Church, 
Lacey,  and  Vernon  are  familiar  as  the  names  of  those 
who  acquired  by  their  deeds  fame  for  themselves  and 
credit  for  the  State  which  had  sent  them  to  the  field 
during  the  war,  and  they  all  began  their  military  career 
as  officers  of  Wayne's  regiment. 

Different  portions  of  the  country  were,  as  we  have 
said,  differently  affected  by  the  conduct  of  the  Ministry 
previous  to  the  Revolution.  Although  all  agreed  that 
their  measures  should   be  resisted,  the  methods  and 


EARLY  TRAINING  AND  DISCIPLINE.  19 

time  and  extent  of  that  resistance  were  subjects  con- 
cerning which,  up  to  the  date  of  the  Declaration  of 
Independence,  scarcely  any  of  the  widely-separated 
sections  of  the  country  could  agree. 

It  is  worth  considering  for  a  moment  how  and  why 
the  revolutionary  excitement  had  so  deeply  affected  a 
population  like  that  of  the  farmers  of  Chester  County  ? 
who  had  suffered  no  practical  grievance,  and  who,  there 
is  no  reason  to  doubt,  were  at  that  time  (as  they  say  in 
their  resolutions  in  July,  1774)  thoroughly  loyal  to  the 
British  crown,  as  to  lead  them  to  take  up  arms  to  main- 
tain their  opinions.  Wayne's  action  at  this  time  is 
typical  not  only  of  his  own  opinions  but  of  those  of  his 
neighbors  and  fellow-farmers,  and  indeed  of  the  rural 
population  throughout  the  Province,  and  some  account 
of  their  political  ideas  affords  the  best  explanation  of 
what  may  seem  inconsistent  in  their  conduct. 

No  portion  of  the  population  in  Pennsylvania  was 
more  completely  law-abiding  than  that  of  Chester 
County.  It  was  largely  made  up  of  Quakers,  the  de- 
scendants of  the  most  prosperous  of  Penn's  followers, 
many  of  them  men  of  Welsh  blood,  with  a  sprinkling 
of  Irish  Protestants.  From  the  reverence  of  these 
people  for  law,  nothing  seemed  to  them  more  illegal, 
and  therefore  wrong,  than  the  enactment  by  Parliament 
since  1763  of  no  fewer  than  eleven  statutes  the  main 
object  of  which  was  to  give  the  English  Ministry 
absolute  control  over  the  Colonies.  This  was  their 
grievance,  and  to  redress  it,  with  no  ulterior  view  what- 
ever, they  thought,  as  their  English  ancestors  had  done, 
that  the  best  plan  was  to  negotiate  with  arms  in  their 
hands.     Neither  Wayne  nor  any  of  his  neighbors  were 


2o  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

in  any  sense  revolutionists  or  adventurers,  nor,  in 
the  new-fangled  phrase  of  the  day,  "  Sons  of  Liberty." 
Wayne  was  their  natural  leader,  but  all  his  surround- 
ings made  him  a  conservative.  He  was  a  young  man 
who  had  just  come  into  a  handsome  landed  estate,  who 
had  been  recently  married,  and  who,  if  he  had  any 
political  ambition,  no  doubt  looked  forward  to  main- 
taining that  position  in  life  which  the  influence  of  his 
wealth  and  education  would  command  among  his  neigh- 
bors. Certainly  he  could  never  have  dreamed  of  mili- 
tary distinction  for  himself  as  the  possible  outcome 
of  the  quarrel  of  which  he  had  become  a  champion. 
His  surroundings  spoke  of  peace  as  the  necessary  con- 
dition of  maintaining  the  material  prosperity  which  was 
everywhere  apparent.  Even  now,  as  one  looks  upon 
the  fair  prospect  which  opens  before  him  in  "  the  Great 
Valley"  and  its  surrounding  region,  of  cultivated  farm, 
of  comfortable  homestead  and  picturesque  woodland, 
stretching  in  the  far  distance  towards  the  Schuylkill, 
everything  around  him  suggesting  thrift  and  a  well- 
ordered  community,  he  feels  that  there  must  have  hap- 
pened something  like  a  moral  earthquake  to  rouse 
such  a  people  to  embark  in  the  vicissitudes  and  calami- 
ties of  war.  And  when  he  reflects  that  this  valley  was 
occupied  at  an  early  date  by  men  of  Anglo-Saxon 
blood  and  traditions,  he  finds  an  explanation  of  the  two 
apparently  contradictory  expressions  of  their  opinions 
at  the  outbreak  of  the  Revolution,  the  one  adopted 
July  13,  1774,  the  other  in  September,  1775. 

The  first  asserted  the  absolute  right  of  every  English 
subject  to  the  enjoyment  and  disposal  of  his  property, 
and  that  no  power  on  earth  could  legally  divest  him  of 


EARLY  TRAINING  AND  DISCIPLINE.  21 

it ;  and  again,  that  the  attempted  invasion  of  that  right 
was  a  grievance  which  should  be  redressed  by  consti- 
tutional means.  What  was  meant  by  constitutional 
means  is  shown  by  the  resolution  adopted  by  the 
Committee  in  September,  as  follows : 

"In  Committee. 

"Chester  Co.,  Sep.  25,  1775. 
"Whereas,  some  persons  evidently  inimical  to  the  liberty  of 
America  have  industriously  propagated  a  report  that  the  military 
associators  of  this  County  in  conjunction  with  the  military  associa- 
tors  in  general,  intend  to  overturn  the  Constitution  by  declaring  an 
independency  in  the  execution  of  which  they  are  aided  by  this 
Committee  and  the  Board  of  Commissioners  and  Assessors  with  the 
arms  now  making  for  this  County,  and  as  such  report  could  not 
originate  but  among  the  worst  of  men  for  the  worst  of  purposes, 
This  Committee  have  thought  proper  to  declare,  and  they  do  hereby 
declare  their  abhorrence  even  of  an  idea  so  pernicious  in  its  nature, 
as  they  ardently  wish  for  nothing  more  than  a  happy  and  speedy 
reconciliation  on  constitutional  principles  with  that  State  from 
whom  they  derive  their  origin. 

"By  order. 

"Anthony  Wayne, 

"  Chairman." 

These  resolutions,  while  they  express  the  opinions  of 
a  man  who  from  the  beginning  to  the  end  of  the  war 
never  sheathed  his  sword,  also  show  how  much  more 
slowly  the  people  of  Chester  County,  and  of  Pennsyl- 
vania generally,  arrived  at  the  ultima  ratio  than  those 
of  New  England,  and  by  what  different  routes.  And  no 
wonder.  Here,  with  all  earthly  blessings  around  them, 
they  had  thus  far  suffered  nothing  from  actual  wrong 
committed,  but  they  were  roused  by  the  violation  of 
a  constitutional  principle,  which  begot  a  fear  lest  evil 


22  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

might  happen  to  them  in  the  future  should  the  claims 
of  the  Ministry  pass  unchallenged.  Their  commerce 
had  not  been  destroyed,  the  capital  of  their  Province 
was  not,  like  Boston,  in  a  state  of  siege,  no  attempt  had 
been  made  so  to  change  their  charter  as  to  place  them 
more  fully  under  the  control  of  the  Ministry,  their  town 
meetings  had  not  been  forbidden,  their  system  of  se- 
lecting juries  had  not  been  interfered  with,  nor  was  the 
choice  of  officers  once  made  by  the  people  transferred 
to  the  appointment  of  the  Ministry.  Still,  they  took 
up  arms,  and  protested,  as  Wayne's  grandfather  might 
have  done  when  he  joined  King  William's  forces  at  the 
battle  of  the  Boyne,  "  that  levying  money  for  or  to  the 
use  of  the  Crown  by  pretence  of  prerogative  without 
due  authority  was  illegal."  And  on  this  opposition  to 
arbitrary  methods  they  staked  the  issue,  and  sympa- 
thized with  Boston  as  suffering  in  the  common  cause. 
Wayne,  with  a  deep  and  abiding  conviction  that  the 
only  way  to  secure  redress  was  to  extort  it,  was  a  true 
conservative  from  the  beginning  to  the  end  of  the  war. 
His  letters,  which  are  filled  with  expressions  of  un- 
dying love  for  his  country  and  of  evidences  of  a  self- 
sacrificing  devotion,  will  be  searched  in  vain  for  a  single 
revolutionary  sentiment.  At  all  times  we  shall  see  that 
this  "  Mad  Anthony"  was  the  slave  of  law.  Nor  must 
it  be  forgotten  that  neither  Wayne  nor  his  companions 
fought  any  the  less  earnestly  or  less  successfully  in  the 
contest  because  such  was  their  political  creed. 

During  the  winter  of  1776  Wayne  was  engaged  at 
Chester  in  preparing  his  men  for  active  service,  and 
in  bringing  them  under  proper  discipline.  He  began 
by  punishing  desertion  severely.     Before  his  regiment 


EARLY  TRAINING  AND  DISCIPLINE.  23 

left  Pennsylvania  no  less  than  six  of  its  members  were 
punished,  some  with  fifteen  and  others  with  thirty-nine 
lashes,  for  this  offence.  All  through  his  career  Wayne 
was  known  for  the  strictness  with  which  he  enforced 
discipline,  and  to  this  practice  was  doubtless  due  in  a 
great  measure  the  efficiency  of  his  men.  Like  many 
other  officers  in  the  army  of  the  Revolution,  Wayne 
appears  to  have  studied,  before  he  held  command,  the 
principles  of  strategy  as  laid  down  in  such  books  as 
"  Marshal  Saxe's  Campaigns"  and  "The  Commentaries 
of  Caesar  on  the  Gallic  War,"  and  in  his  letters  are 
frequent  allusions  to  the  opinions  of  these  masters  of 
the  art.  There  was  a  painful  consciousness  of  igno- 
rance on  the  part  of  many  of  the  officers  of  the  high- 
est rank  in  the  service  on  this  subject,  which  sometimes 
led  them  to  an  indecision  which  was  fatal,  or,  to  what 
was  almost  as  disastrous,  a  confidence  in  the  opinions 
of  Generals  Gates  and  Charles  Lee,  who  passed  in 
the  army  of  the  Revolution  as  officers  educated  in  a 
scientific  knowledge  of  the  art  of  war  as  practised  in 
Europe.  But  a  large  fund  of  common  sense,  experi- 
ence, and  perfect  coolness  in  emergencies,  rather  than 
books  on  the  art  of  war,  tempered  the  zeal  of  Wayne, 
so  that  towards  the  close  of  his  career,  and  especially 
during  the  campaign  in  Georgia,  he  was  justly  regarded 
as  an  accomplished  strategist. 

There  was  one  little  piece  of  pardonable  vanity  with 
which  he  was  charged  in  the  beginning  of  his  career, 
the  details  of  which  seem  amusing  enough  when  we 
recall  the  rough,  hard  work  which  his  regiment  had  to 
do,  and  that  was  his  apparent  anxiety  for  the  military 
appearance  of  the  men  of  his  regiment.     In  a  letter  to 


24  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

Washington  he  says,  "  I  have  an  insuperable  bias  in 
favor  of  an  elegant  uniform  and  soldierly  appearance,  so 
much  so  that  I  would  rather  risk  my  life  and  reputation 
at  the  head  of  the  same  men  in  an  attack,  clothed  and 
appointed  as  I  could  wish,  merely  with  bayonets  and  a 
single  charge  of  ammunition,  than  to  take  them  as  they 
appear  in  common  with  sixty  rounds  of  cartridges.  It 
may  be  a  false  idea,  but  I  cannot  help  cherishing  it." 
The  disastrous  campaign  in  Canada  did  not  change  his 
opinion  of  the  necessity  of  keeping  up  appearances. 
In  his  orders  of  July  9,  1776,  he  tells  his  regiment  that 
"  a  barber  for  each  company  shall  be  nominated  for  the 
purpose  of  shaving  the  soldiers  and  dressing  their 
hair,"  and  that  "the  colonel  is  determined  to  punish 
every  man  who  comes  on  parade  with  a  long  beard, 
slovenly  dressed,  or  dirty ;"  and  again,  "  he  hopes  the 
officers  will  think  it  their  duty  to  see  that  their  men 
always  appear  washed,  shaved,  their  hair  plaited  and 
powdered,  and  their  arms  in  good  order."  It  is  char- 
acteristic of  the  care  of  Wayne  for  the  appearance  of 
his  men  that  at  the  time  this  order  was  issued  his  regi- 
ment had  just  gone  through  a  campaign  in  Canada  (as 
will  soon  appear),  where  they  had  suffered  from  the 
roughest  and  hardest  usage,  and  where  they  had  lost 
almost  everything  belonging  to  them  save  their  hair 
and  their  beards. 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE  CANADIAN  CAMPAIGN  AND  TICONDEROGA. 

The  expedition  to  Canada  in  the  spring  and  summer 
of  1776  was  the  first  campaign  in  which  the  regiment 
of  Colonel  Wayne  was  engaged.  It  formed  part  of 
a  brigade  of  Pennsylvanians  commanded  by  General 
William  Thompson,  composed  of  the  Second  Battalion, 
under  Colonel  St.  Clair,  the  Sixth,  under  Colonel  Wil- 
liam Irvine,  and  the  Fourth,  under  Colonel  Wayne.  It 
was  sent  by  order  of  Congress  to  reinforce  the  army 
under  Generals  Montgomery  and  Arnold,  which  had 
been  repulsed  at  Quebec. 

It  is  not  easy  fully  to  understand  why  such  pro- 
digious efforts  were  made  in  the  beginning  of  the  Rev- 
olution to  induce  the  Canadians  to  join  us  in  the  revolt 
against  the  English  government.  There  is  no  doubt 
that  it  was  hoped  not  merely  by  the  majority  of  the 
members  of  Congress,  but  also  by  men  of  the  sagacity 
of  Dr.  Franklin  and  the  calm  judgment  of  Washing- 
ton, that  some  signal  advantage  would  be  gained  to  the 
American  cause  by  the  expeditions  under  the  command 
of  Montgomery  and  Arnold  and  the  capture  of  Quebec. 
Faith  in  the  result  must  have  been  very  strong  when 
the  best  troops  under  the  bravest  officers  were  sent 
on  this  far-distant  and  dangerous  expedition,  when  the 
issue  of   the  siege   of   Boston  was  as  yet  uncertain, 

when   New  York  was  threatened  by  the  enemy,  and 

25 


26  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

when  the  ardor  and  zeal  of  the  new  levies  before 
Boston  had  grown  so  cool  that  many  of  them  were  dis- 
gusted with  the  service  and  were  ready  to  leave  the 
army  on  the  very  day  on  which  the  short  term  of  their 
engagement  ended.  It  is  true  that  Canada  was  poorly 
defended  at  the  time,  and  had  there  been  any  prospect 
of  our  maintaining  possession  of  the  country  there 
might  have  been  some  excuse  for  sending  so  many 
troops,  commanded  by  our  most  gallant  officers,  to  con- 
quer it.  But  in  our  eagerness  we  forgot  that  it  was 
easy,  whenever  the  St.  Lawrence  was  navigable,  to 
send  by  that  river  an  overwhelming  force  brought  from 
England  against  us.  The  impression  seemed  to  be 
that  once  within  the  walls  of  Quebec,  Canada  was  ours. 
Besides  these  miscalculations,  we  fell  into  two  capital 
errors  in  planning  such  an  expedition.  One  was  that 
the  Canadians  were  to  the  last  degree  discontented 
with  the  English  government,  owing  to  the  provisions 
of  the  Quebec  Act  of  1774,  and,  secondly,  that  as  good 
Catholics  and  Frenchmen  they  were  thoroughly  dissat- 
isfied with  remaining  under  the  control  of  a  foreign  and 
Protestant  government. 

The  Quebec  Act,  by  which  the  Province  was  gov- 
erned, provided,  with  what  has  since  proved  singular 
wisdom,  that  as  the  body  of  the  population  was  French 
it  should  be  governed  in  the  French  and  not  in  the 
English  way.  There  was  no  representative  assembly  ; 
the  people  were  ruled  directly  by  the  king  through  a 
governor  appointed  by  him  ;  the  old  French  law  was 
recognized,  especially  in  its  regulation  of  land-tenures  ; 
posts  of  honor  were  conferred  upon  the  French  Cath- 
olic nobles,  and,  more  than  all,  for  the  first  time  since 


CANADIAN  CAMPAIGN  AND    TICONDEROGA.      27 

the  Reformation  the  large  Catholic  Church  estates,  the 
continued  possession  of  which  had  been  guaranteed  by 
the  treaty  of  1763,  were  confirmed  by  the  Act  to  the 
clergy.  There  was,  it  is  true,  much  discontent  on  the 
part  of  both  the  French  and  the  English  inhabitants,  the 
latter  of  whom  were  few  in  numbers  compared  with  the 
former.  The  French,  of  course,  disliked  a  foreign  and 
alien  rule,  and  the  English  felt  that  the  great  guaran- 
tees of  liberty  had  been  sacrificed  in  order  to  keep  the 
Province  tranquil.  Congress,  with  the  inborn  instinct 
of  English  freemen,  supposed  that  because  the  Quebec 
Act  was  distasteful  to  the  thirteen  Colonies  it  must 
necessarily  be  so  to  the  people  of  Canada.  Under  this 
delusion  the  invasion  of  the  Province  was  undertaken, 
the  expectation  being  that  the  invaders  would  be  greatly 
aided  by  the  discontented  inhabitants.  This  hope  was 
in  a  great  measure  disappointed,  and  the  result  was  that 
our  troops  were  repulsed  from  the  walls  of  Quebec, 
leaving  no  trace  of  their  work  there  save  the  un- 
dying remembrance  of  their  heroic  valor.  Congress 
was  a  good  deal  puzzled  to  account  for  the  want  of 
support  given  to  the  invasion,  especially  by  the  Cath- 
olic clergy,  whose  influence  was  all-powerful  with  the 
French  population.  They  sent  a  commission  to  Canada 
to  clear  up  the  mystery,  composed  of  Dr.  Franklin, 
Mr.  Carroll  (afterwards  Catholic  archbishop  of  Balti- 
more), and  Judge  Chase.  These  gentlemen  soon  dis- 
covered that  the  clergy  declined  to  interfere,  thinking 
that  the  exercise  of  their  religion,  and  especially  the 
possession  of  the  Church  estates,  would  be  safer  under 
the  guarantee  of  the  treaty  of  1763  than  under  the 
promises  of  religious  toleration  made  by  the  American 


28  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

Congress.  No  doubt  these  priests  in  so  acting  were 
wise  in  their  generation. 

Such  was  the  condition  of  affairs  in  Canada  when  the 
second  expedition  was  undertaken.  Its  principal  object 
was  to  reinforce  the  troops  already  in  that  Province ; 
but  where  they  would  be  found,  or  in  what  condition, 
no  one  could  tell.  A  portion  of  Wayne's  regiment 
was  hurried  forward  by  companies,  but  in  such  an  un- 
prepared condition  that  it  was  not  until  the  first  week 
in  May,  upon  reaching  Albany,  that  they  were  provided 
with  arms.  Five  companies  of  the  regiment,  under 
Lieutenant-Colonel  Johnston,  were  detained  on  Long 
Island  as  late  as  May  15  without  arms,  and  without  any 

prospect  of  receiving  any  other  weapons  than  "d d 

tomahawks,"  to  use  the  energetic  language  of  their 
commander.  On  the  5th  of  June  they  reached  the  fort 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Sorel  in  Canada,  about  half-way 
between  Montreal  and  Quebec,  and  there  they  found 
the  remnant  of  General  Montgomery's  army,  which 
had  retreated  from  Quebec,  and  the  Pennsylvania  Bri- 
gade, under  General  Thompson,  which  had  preceded 
them  in  the  retreat,  the  whole  under  the  command  of 
General  Sullivan.  The  British  force,  under  General 
Burgoyne,  was  at  Three  Rivers,  some  distance  down 
the  St.  Lawrence.  The  army  having  been  collected  at 
the  Sorel,  Sullivan  ordered  General  Thompson  with  the 
Pennsylvania  Brigade  to  attack  the  British  at  Three 
Rivers.  As  this  was  the  first  battle  of  the  Revolution 
in  which  Pennsylvania  troops  fought  almost  alone  (Max- 
well's small  New  Jersey  battalion  being  brigaded  with 
it),  and  as  it  was  Wayne's  maiden  battle,  we  annex  his 
own  account  of  it. 


CANADIAN  CAMPAIGN  AND    TICONDEROGA.      29 

Colonel  Wayne  to  Dr.  Franklin  and  others. 

Camp  at  Sorel  13th  June  1776 

Dear  Sir, — After  a  long  march  by  land  &  water  varied  with  De- 
lightful as  well  as  Gloomy  prospects  we  arrived  here  the  night  of 
the  5th  Instant  and  on  the  7th  it  was  agreed  in  a  council  of  war  to 
attack  the  enemy  at  Three  Rivers  about  47  miles  lower  down,  whose 
strength  was  estimated  at  3  or  4  Hundred.  Gen'l  Thompson  was  ap- 
pointed for  this  Command,  the  Disposition  was  as  follows  4  attacks 
to  be  made  at  the  same  time  viz  Col  Maxwell  to  conduct  the  first, 
myself  the  second,  Col  St  Clair  the  third,  &  Col  Irvine  the  4th 
Lie't  Col  Hartley  the  Reserves. 

On  the  same  evening  we  Embarked  and  arrived  at  Col  St  Clairs 
Encampment  about  midnight — it  was  intended  that  the  Attack 
shou'd  be  made  at  the  dawn  of  day — this  we  found  to  be  Imprac- 
ticable, therefor  we  Remained  where  we  were  until  the  9th  when 
we  to  the  number  of  1450  Men  all  Penns'lvanians  except  Maxwells 
Battalion  took  boats 

About  2  in  the  morning  we  landed  nine  Miles  above  the  town, 
and  after  an  Hour's  march  day  began  to  appear.  Our  Guides  had 
mistook  the  road,  the  Enemy  Discovered  and  Cannonaded  us  from 
their  ships,  a  Surprise  was  out  of  the  Question — we  therefore  put 
our  best  face  on  it  and  Continued  our  line  of  march  thro'  a  thick 
deep  swamp  three  miles  wide,  and  after  four  Hours  Arrived  at  a 
more  open  piece  of  Ground — amidst  the  thickest  firing  of  the  ship- 
ping when  all  of  a  sudden  a  large  Body  of  Regulars  marched  down 
in  good  Order  Immediately  in  front  of  me  to  prevent  our  forming — 
in  Consequence  of  which  I  Ordered  my  Light  Infantry  together 
with  Capt  Hay's  Company  of  Riflemen  to  advance  and  amuse  them 
wThilst  I  was  forming ;  they  began  and  Continued  the  attack  with 
great  spirit  until  I  advanced  to  support  them  when  I  ordered  them 
to  wheel  to  the  Right  &  left  and  flank  the  Enemy  at  the  same  time 
we  poured  in  a  well  Aimed  and  heavy  fire  in  front  as  this — 

they  attempted  to  Retreat  in  good  Order 

ENEfoY> at  first  but  in  a  few  minutes  broke  and  ran 

\  /in  the  utmost  Confusion.     About  this  time 

\ /         the  Other  Divisions  began  to  Emerge  from 

the  swamp  except   Maxwell  who  with  his 
was  advanced  in  a  thicket  a  Considerable  Distance  to  the  left — our 


30  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

Rear  now  becoming  our  front  &c  At  this  Instant  we  Rec'd  a  heavy- 
fire  in  flank  from  musketry,  field  pieces,  Howitzers  &c  &c  which 
threw  us  into  some  confusion,  but  was  Instantly  Remedied —  We 
Advanced  in  Column  up  to  their  breast  work's  which  till  then  we 
had  not  Discovered — at  this  time  Gen'l  Thompson  with  Cols  St 
Clair,  Irvine  &  Hartly  were  marching  in  full  view  to  our  support. 
Col  Maxwell  now  began  to  Engage  on  the  left  of  me,  the  fire  was  so 
hot  he  could  not  mantain  his  post — the  other  troops  had  also  filed 
off  to  the  left — my  small  Battalion  composed  of  my  own  &  two  Com- 
panies of  Jersey  men  under  Major  Ray  amounting  in  the  whole  to 
about  200  were  left  exposed  to  the  whole  fire  of  the  shipping  in 
flank  and  full  three  thousand  men  in  front  with  all  their  Artillery 
under  the  command  of  Gen'l  Burgoyne —  Our  people  taking  ex- 
ample by  others  gave  way —  Indeed  it  was  Imposible  for  them  to 
stand  it  longer —  Whilst  Col  Allen  and  myself  were  Employed  in 
Rallying  the  troops  Let.  Col.  Hartly  had  advanced  with  the  Re- 
serves and  bravely  Attacked  the  Enemy  from  a  thicket  in  a  swamp 
to  the  left,  this  hardiness  of  his  was  of  the  Utmost  Consequence  to 
us — we  having  rallied  about  800  men  from  the  Different  Regiments 
— we  now  sent  to  find  the  Gen'l  and  Other  field  Officers — at  the 
same  time  the  Rifle  men  of  mine  &  Irvine's  kept  up  a  galling  fire  on 
the  Enemy — the  Swamp  was  so  deep  and  thick  with  timber  and 
underwood  that  a  man  10  yards  in  front  or  Rear  wou'd  not  see  the 
men  Drawn  up — this  was  the  Cause  of  the  Gen'l,  Col  St  Clair,  Max- 
well &  Irvine  missing  us — or  perhaps  they  had  taken  for  Granted 
that  we  were  all  cut  off — Col  Hartly  who  lay  near  by  retreated 
without  a  Discovery  on  either  side,  until  he  Crossed  our  line  near 
the  left,  which  caused  our  people  to  follow  him — Allen  and  myself 
were  now  left  on  the  field  with  only  twenty  men  &  five  Officers,  the 
Enemy  still  Continuing  their  whole  fire  from  Great  and  small  guns 
upon  us — but  afraid  to  venture  from  their  lines,  we  thought  it  pru- 
dent to  keep  them  in  play  by  keeping  up  a  small  fire  in  Order  to 
gain  time  for  our  people  to  make  good  their  Retreat  in  Consequence 
of  which  we  Continued  about  an  Hour  longer  in  the  field,  and  then 
Retreated  back  into  the  woods  which  brought  us  to  a  Road  on  the 
far  side  of  the  Swamp.  We  followed  this  Road  about  two  miles 
when  we  cut  loose  from  our  small  party  &  reached  the  Place  where 
our  people  had  enter'd  the  swamp  by  which  means  we  soon  Collected 


CANADIAN  CAMPAIGN  AND    TICONDEROGA.      31 

6  or  700  men  with  whom  we  Retreated  in  good  Order  but  without 
nourishment  of  any  kind.  The  Enemy  who  were  Strong  in  number 
had  Detached  in  two  or  three  bodies  about  1500  men  to  cut  off  our 
Retreat.  They  way  laid  &  Engaged  us  again  about  9  miles  from  the 
field  of  Battle,  they  did  us  little  damage.  We  Continued  our  march, 
and  the  third  day  almost  worn  out  with  fatigue,  Hunger,  &  Difi- 
culties,  scarcely  to  be  paralleld  we  arrived  here  with  1100  men,  but 
Gen'l  Thompson  Col  Irvine  Doc'r  McCalla  and  several  Officers  are 
prisoners  at  Three  Rivers —  Col  St  Clair  Arrived  alone  last  night 
Their  Separation  from  the  Army  (which  appeared  Indeed  to  be  lost) 
was  the  cause  of  their  misfortunes — I  believe  it  will  be  Universally 
allowed  that  Col  Allen  &  myself  have  saved  the  Army  in  Canada. 
Capt  Robinson  has  proved  himself  the  Soldier  and  the  Gen'tm.  his 
Conduct  has  outgone  the  most  Sanguine  hopes  of  his  friends,  out  of 
150  of  my  own  I  have  lost  more  than  the  One  Quarter  part — to- 
gether with  Slight  touch  in  my  Right  leg — which  is  partly  well 
already,  we  shall  have  more  business  soon,  our  People  are  in  high 
spirits  and  long  for  the  Other  bought  as  well  as  your  H'l  S't — 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

So  much  for  the  battle  of  the  Three  Rivers.  We 
now  come  to  the  retreat  of  the  beaten  army,  and  the 
prompt  and  skilful  efforts  made  by  Colonel  Wayne  to 
cover  with  it  the  escape  of  Arnold  from  Montreal,  to 
which  place  the  British  army,  successful  at  the  Three 
Rivers,  pushed  forward  at  once.  Arnold,  on  learning 
the  approach  of  the  enemy,  had  retreated  from  Mon- 
treal, and  sent  his  aide-de-camp,  Wilkinson,  to  Sullivan 
to  ask  that  some  of  his  men  should  be  detached  to 
aid  him.  In  his  search  for  Sullivan  on  the  line  of 
the  retreat  Wilkinson  found  the  men  whose  aid  he  was 
sent  to  implore  in  a  pitiable  condition.  We  cannot  do 
better  than  borrow  his  graphic  account  of  what  followed 
(Memoirs,  vol.  i.  p.  51  et  seq.) :  "I  found  every  house 
and  hut  on  my  route  crowded  with  straggling  men 


32  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

without  officers,  and  officers  without  men.  The  first 
officer  of  my  acquaintance  whom  I  met  was  Lieutenant- 
Colonel  William  Allen,1  of  the  Second  Pennsylvania.  I 
informed  him  of  my  orders  for  a  detachment.  He  re- 
plied, '  Wilkinson,  this  army  is  conquered  by  its  fears, 
and  I  doubt  whether  you  can  draw  any  assistance  from 
it ;  but  Colonel  Wayne  is  in  the  rear,  and  if  any  one 
can  do  it  he  is  the  man.'  On  which  I  quickened  my 
pace,  and  half  an  hour  after  I  met  that  gallant  soldier  as 
much  at  his  ease  as  if  he  was  marching  to  a  parade  of 
exercise.  He  halted  at  the  bridge  and  posted  a  guard, 
with  orders  to  stop  every  man,  without  regard  to  corps, 
who  appeared  to  be  active,  alert,  and  equipped.  In  a 
short  time  a  detachment  was  completely  formed  and  in 
motion  for  Longueil  (on  the  route  to  Montreal).  The 
very  men  who  only  the  day  before  were  retreating  in 
confusion  before  a  division  of  the  enemy  now  marched 
with  alacrity  against  his  main  body."  Shortly  after- 
wards it  was  discovered  that  Arnold  had  escaped  with- 
out the  aid  of  Wayne's  troops,  and  they  were  pushed 
on  to  join  Sullivan.  "Then,"  says  Wilkinson,  "our 
detachment  was  discovered  advancing  on  the  bank  of 
the  Sorel  two  miles  below  the  fort.  We  were  taken 
(by  Sullivan)  for  the  enemy,  and  great  alarm  and  con- 
fusion ensued,  the  drums  beat  to  arms,  and  General 
Sullivan  and  his  officers  were  observed  making  great 
exertions  to  prepare  for  battle.  Colonel  Wayne  halted 
his  column,  pulled  out  his  glass,  and  seemed  to  enjoy 

x  Colonel  Allen,  who  behaved  so  gallantly  at  the  battle  of  the 
Three  Rivers,  was  one  of  the  four  sons  of  Chief  Justice  Allen,  of 
Pennsylvania.  After  the  Declaration  of  Independence  was  adopted 
he  resigned  his  commission  and  entered  the  British  service. 


CANADIAN  CAMPAIGN  AND    TICONDEROGA.      3$ 

the  panic  his  appearance  produced,"  etc.  These  oper- 
ations, disastrous  in  their  results  in  many  ways,  seemed 
to  show  that  there  was  at  least  one  man  in  that  army 
with  the  stuff  of  a  true  general  in  him.  The  coolness 
and  readiness  of  resource  which  he  exhibited,  and  the 
courage  with  which  he  was  able  in  a  short  hour  to  recall 
a  fleeing  and  panic-stricken  rabble  to  the  duty  and  dis- 
cipline of  soldiers,  find  scarcely  a  parallel  in  the  history 
of  our  Revolutionary  campaigns.  To  understand  fully 
Wayne's  position,  it  must  not  be  forgotten  that  in  this 
battle  and  retreat  Wayne  commanded  for  the  first  time 
men  who  were  brought  also  for  the  first  time  under 
the  fire  of  the  enemy.  General  Thompson  and  Colonel 
Irvine  having  been  taken  prisoners  at  the  Three  Rivers, 
and  Colonel  St.  Clair  having  been  wounded,  the  com- 
mand of  the  Pennsylvania  troops  during  the  difficult 
retreat  from  the  Sorel  to  Ticonderoga  devolved  upon 
Colonel  Wayne,  himself,  as  we  have  seen,  slightly 
wounded.  They  were  closely  pursued  from  St.  John's 
to  Lake  Champlain  by  a  British  division  under  Bur- 
goyne,  and  it  required  all  the  activity  and  vigilance  of 
the  commander  to  enable  his  men  to  reach  in  safety 
first  the  Isle  aux  Noix,  and  afterwards  Crown  Point 
and  Ticonderoga,  where  they  determined  to  make  a 
stand.  The  enemy,  however,  after  destroying  Arnold's 
fleet  on  the  lake,  and  threatening  Ticonderoga,  de- 
ferred further  operations  until  the  next  season. 

These  operations  in  Canada  had  established  the  rep- 
utation of  Colonel  Wayne  as  an  energetic  officer,  and 
no  doubt  led  to  his  appointment  on  the  1 8  th  of  Novem- 
ber, by  General  Schuyler,  to  the  command  of  the  fort 
at  Ticonderoga  with  its  dependencies,  the  second  most 

4 


34  MAJOR-GENERAL   WAYNE. 

important  military  post,  as  Wayne  regarded  it,  in  the 
country.  The  garrison  consisted  of  about  two  thousand 
five  hundred  men,  who  were  under  his  command  during 
the  winter.  His  labors,  trials,  and  anxieties  while  sta- 
tioned at  this  post  are  most  graphically  described  in  his 
letters.  They  were  written  to  private  friends,  who  were 
naturally  very  anxious  to  know  how  he  and  his  two 
thousand  Pennsylvanians  were  faring  while  guarding 
this  distant  frontier.  The  style  of  these  letters  is  very 
free  and  unconventional,  but  they  are  interesting  as 
presenting  a  very  striking  picture  of  garrison  life  and 
its  surroundings.  The  ever-confident  and  even  at  times 
boastful  spirit  so  characteristic  of  Wayne  is  very  con- 
spicuous in  these  letters,  but  it  does  not  overshadow 
the  real  earnestness  and  enthusiasm  of  the  patriot  and 
the  soldier.  They  embrace  a  great  variety  of  subjects, 
including  the  position  of  the  garrison  at  Ticonderoga, 
the  condition  of  the  Pennsylvania  regiments  there,  the 
unhealthiness  of  the  post,  the  difficulties  arising  from 
short  enlistments,  observations  on  the  anarchical  condi- 
tion of  things  then  prevailing  in  Pennsylvania,  and  so 
forth.  It  is  not  possible  to  arrange  them  in  a  strictly 
chronological  order,  so  as  to  make  the  story  they  tell 
clearer,  but  it  seems  to  us  that  a  selection  from  them 
will  prove,  in  their  unadorned  simplicity,  full  of  interest 
to  those  who  desire  to  know  how  people  felt  and  acted 
in  the  army  and  in  Congress  in  the  dark  days  of  the 
Revolution.  We  copy  those  sent  to  his  wife  and  to  his 
brother-in-law,  Colonel  Penrose.  The  details  he  gives 
of  his  garrison  life  are  interesting.  The  others  ad- 
dressed to  Dr.  Franklin  and  other  friends  on  the  mili- 
tary and  political  situation  are  given  because  they  are 


CANADIAN  CAMPAIGN  AND    TICONDEROGA.      35 

highly  characteristic  of  the  man,  and  show  what  work 

the  Pennsylvania  troops  were  doing  on   the   Canada 

frontier. 

Colonel  Wayne  to  Mrs.  Mary  Wayne. 

TICONDEROGA  1 2th  Aug't  1 776 

Dear  Polly, — I  wrote  to  you  by  the and  sent  a  small  pres- 
ent— he  will  be  able  to  give  you  a  particular  acc't  of  this  place 
and  Army — but  he  will  paint  matters  worse  than  they  realy  are — 
within  these  two  days  we  have  been  Re-enforc'd  by  three  Thousand 
new  England  militia ;  fresh  provision  is  become  more  plenty  than 
salt ;  &  our  people  have  Recovered  health  and  spirits — I  have  now 
the  finest  and  best  Regiment  in  the  Continental  Service — we  are 
viewed  with  admiration  and  pleasure  by  all  the  Officers  in  the  Army, 
and  we  have  render' d  our  camp  almost  Impregnable — 

Fortune  has  heretofore  been  a  fickle  Goddess  to  us — and  like 
some  other  females  changed  for  the  first  new  face  she  saw —  We  shall 
once  more  court  her  in  the  face  of  all  the  British  thunder,  and  take 
her  Vietarmis  from  her  present  possessors —  A  Major  Bigelow — who 
was  sent  with  a  flag  to  Canada — Returned  just  now  from  the  Enemy's 
advanced  post  who  treated  him  with  a  Cold  distant  Civility — he 
has  brought  with  him  the  Orders  of  the  day  Issued  by  General 
Carleton — they  are  Bombastical,  Insolent,  &  empty — you'll  shortly 
see  them  published  by  Congress —  .  .  .  The  fall  may  turn  up  some- 
thing,— we  are  prepared  for  the  event,  and  Death  or  Glory  will  attend 
us —  I  wou'd  write  to  several  of  my  old  friends  &  neighbours  but 
for  want  of  time; — you'l  let  them  know  they  live  in  my  grateful 
memory,  and  I  shall  always  esteem  myself  happy  in  Rendering  them 
every  service  in  my  Power. 

I  hope  yet  to  pass  many  an  Agreeable  hour  in  your  and  their 
Society — but  if  the  fate  of  war  shou'd  Order  it  otherwise — they  will 
Remember  I  fell  in  the  support  of  their  Rights — and  the  Rights  of 
Mankind 

Adieu  my  Dear  Girl 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

Colonel  Wayne  to  Mrs.  Mary  Wayne. 

Ticonderoga  3d  Jan'y  1777 
Dear  Polly, — I  don't  know  where  this  will  meet  you.    The  Rapid 
progress  of  the  Enemy  through  Jersey  only  reach'd  us  last  evening — 


36  MAJOR-GENERAL   WAYNE. 

perhaps  they  may  now  be  in  Phil'a  and  Ravaging  the  Country  for 
many  miles  Round 

The  Anxiety  we  are  under  on  acc't  of  our  families  and  friends  is 
much  better  felt  than  expressed-^  Should  you  be  necessitated  to 
leave  Easttown — I  doubt  not  but  you' I  meet  with  Hospitality  in  the 
Back  parts  of  the  provinces —  The  British  Rebels  may  be  successful 
for  a  time  ;  they  may  take  and  Destroy  our  Towns  near  the  Water  and 
Distress  us  much  But  they  never  can — they  never  will  subjugate  the 
free  born  sons  of  America.  Our  Growing  Country  can  meet  with 
Considerable  Losses  and  survive  them :  but  one  Defeat  to  our  more 
than  Savage  Enemy  Ruins  them  for  ever : 

A  number  of  unhappy  Circumstances  have  Contributed  to  their 
success  thus  far,  but  let  not  that  in  the  least  Dispirit  you.  We  shall 
soon  learn  to  face  them  in  the  field  and  the  day  is  not  far  off  when 
we  shall  produce  a  Conviction  to  the  World  that  we  Deserve  to  be 
free — 

I  expect  every  hour  to  be  Relieved  with  Orders  to  march  to  the 
Assistance  of  Gen'l  Washington:  I  have  1500  Hardy  Veterans  left 
who  will  push  hard  for  Victory  and  Revenge — they  are  second  to 
none  in  Courage  (I  have  seen  them  tried)  and  I  know  they  Equal 
any  Regulars  in  point  of  Discipline — I  hope  soon  to  meet  their 
Sanguine  Wish — that  is  to  lead  them  on  to  Death  or  Glory 

Kiss  my  little  boy  and  Girl  for  me —  Give  my  kindest  Compli- 
ments to  all  friends  and  believe  me  ever  yours 

A.  Wayne. 

[Mrs.  M.  Wayne.] 

Colonel  Wayne  to  Colonel  Penrose. 

TlCONDEROGA  23rd  Aug.  1 776 

We  Remain  in  the  same  state  as  when  I  wrote  you  last,  with  only 
this  Difference — I  begin  to  get  me  in  flesh;  wine,  punch,  porter, 
Venson  Mutton  Beef  Potatoes  Peas  beans  Butter  &  Cheese  begin  to 
make  their  appearance  in  Camp ;  of  these  good  Creatures  I  the  more 
freely  partake — as  man  can  not  live  by  bread  alone  ;  there  are  but  few 
who  live  in  this  way  tho'  all  wou'd  wish  it,  provided  they  cou'd 
obtain  it  without  much  expense — but  that  is  Impossible  here  for  it 
appears  to  be  the  last  part  of  the  world  that  God  made  &  I  have 
some  ground  to  believe  it  was  finished  in  the  dark — that  it  was  never 
Intended  that  man  shou'd  live  in  it  is  clear— for  the  people  who 


CANADIAN  CAMPAIGN  AND    TICONDEROGA.      37 

attempted  to  make  any  stay — have  for  the  most  part  perished  by 
pestilence  or  the  sword. 

I  believe  it  to  be  the  Ancient  Golgotha  or  place  of  Skulls — they 
are  so  plenty  here  that  our  people  for  want  of  Other  Vessels  drink 
out  of  them  whilst  the  soldiers  make  tent  pins  of  the  shin  and  thigh 
bones  of  Abercrumbies  men — 

[Col.  Penrose.] 

Colonel  Wayne  to  Dr.  Franklin. 

Ticonderoga  29th  July  1776 
Dear  Sir, — We  are  so  far  Removed  from  the  seat  of  Govern' t  of 
the  free  and  Independent  states  of  America — and  such  an  Insurmount- 
able Barrier,  Albany,  between  us  that  not  one  letter,  or  the  least  In- 
telligence of  any  thing  that's  doing  with  you  can  reach  us.  Through 
the  medium  of  my  Chaplain  (the  Rev  Mr  Jones),  I  hope  this  will 
reach  you  as  he  has  promised  to  blow  out  any  man's  brains  who  will 
attempt  to  take  it  from  him 

Naturally,  I  must  own  I  have  some  Apprehensions  for  the  Brave 
and  Generous  sons  of  America  who  will  be  obliged  to  bear  the  brunt 
of  the  day. — A  raw  Undisciplined  Militia  crowding  in  upon  them 
will  in  a  few  Weeks  become  Impatient  of  Command  &  Subject  to 
many  Disorders  fatal  to  an  army — an  artful  enemy  will  wait  the 
favourable  moment  to  make  approach — Howe  is  not  unacquainted 
with  the  wretched  Condition  our  people  were  in  at  Cambridge — 
he  lost  the  Opportunity — he'l  not  be  guilty  of  the  like  soon 
again — 

Burgoyne  will  attempt  a  Junction.  He'l  not  effect  it  without  the 
loss  of  much  blood — Col  St  Clair,  Dehaes,  &  myself  are  in  posses- 
sion of  Montcalms  lines.  We  shall  render  them  more  formidable 
than  they  ever  were  in  a  few  days.  We  are  to  be  joined  by  Col 
Hartley.  The  whole  of  the  Pennsylvanians  in  this  Country  will 
amount  to  1600  men  fit  for  duty  Officers  Included —  Our  lines  are 
extensive — but  Rest  assured,  If  Burgoyne  makes  an  attack  upon  us 
— the  British  arms  will  meet  a  worse  fate  than  when  under  Aber- 
crombie —  They'l  find  an  enemy  fertile  in  expedients,  and  brave  by 
nature,  who  will  push  them  hard  for  Victory,  &  Revenge  for  the 
unfortunate  affair  at  the  Three  Rivers — I  am  almost  tempted   to 


38  MAJOR-GENERAL   WAYNE. 

say  with  MacDuff,  Gracious  heaven  !  cut  short  all  Intervention  and 
front  to  front  set  those  sons  of  War  and  ourselves — if  they  then 
escape  may  heaven  forgive  them  too — 

The  Eastern  troops  are  stationed  on  the  East  and  Opposite  side  of 
the  lake — on  a  peninsula  Inaccessible  except  at  one  spot — which  they 
are  beginning  to  fortify —  These  are  composed  of  three  Brigades,  we 
of  one  under  Col  St  Clair,  who  with  myself  are  Engineers  in  chief. 
We  amend,  form,  and  Alter  such  part,  and  parts  of  the  French  lines 
as  we  think  proper,  a  plan  of  which  is  here  Inclosed — 

I  believe  the  whole  amount  of  our  Army  fit  for  duty  may  amount 
to  about  3500  men — we  expect  a  Reinforcement  from  Connecticut 
shortly  of  1500,  and  we  are  Indefatigable  in  preparing  to  meet  the 
Enemy  by  water — the  superiority  in  a  naval  force  on  this  Lake  is  an 
Object  of  the  first  moment —  It  has  been  we  think  shamefully  neg- 
lected— but  now  we  have  Information  of  100  Carpenters  from  the 
Eastward  and  50  from  Philadelphia,  being  at  Skene'sboro',  and  all 
at  work  in  building  Gondolas —  At  present  we  have  three  little 
schoners,  and  one  sloop  well  Rigged — and  man'd  with  people  drafted 
from  the  Respective  Regiments,  they  carry  from  8  to  16  Guns  each. 
These  with  four  Gondolas  already  built  will  be  a  formidable  fleet  in 
this  sea — on  which  I  think  we  may  ride  Triumphant  if  we  please. 
The  Enemy  on  the  Other  hand  are  Industriously  Employ'd  in  build- 
ing vessels,  Batteaus  &c  &c  so  that  in  a  few  days  we  shall  put  the 
matter  to  the  test.  We  have  Rec'd  two  days  fresh  Provisions  and 
have  a  prospect  of  being  better  supplied — our  people  begin  to  recruit 
in  health  and  spirits — but  are  still  Destitute  of  almost  every  neces- 
sary fit  for  a  soldier,  shoes,  stockings  shirts  and  coats  are  articles  not 
easily  done  without — yet  they  cannot  be  Obtained — 

I  am  sorry  to  have  Occasion  to  write  in  this  manner  but  when 
Objects  of  Distress  hourly  strike  the  eye — Objects  that  look  up  to 
me  for  Relief,  I  can't  but  feel  for  their  situation  although  unable 
to  help  them —  Can't  some  means  be  fallen  upon  to  send  a  speedy 
supply  of  these  articles — 

The  State  of  Mass'ts  Bay  has  Established  a  post  to  this  place  &  all 
letters  carried  free  to  the  Army — as  you'l  see  by  the  Inclosed  note. 
Can't  you  procure  a  similar  one  to  pass  in  our  State — or  are  we  less 
worthy  than  the  Gentlemen  from  the  Eastward — be  that  as  it  may — 
an  Inquiry  into  the  cause  of  this  shameful  Conduct  in  some  of  the 


CANADIAN  CAMPAIGN  AND    TICONDEROGA.      39 

Different  posts  or  Offices  is  a  matter  not  to  be  neglected,  as  it  may 
in  the  end  be  attended  with  bad  and  fatal  Consequences. 

Dr.  Rush  to  Colonel  Wayne. 

Philad'a  Septemb'r  24th  1776 

My  dear  Sir, — I  have  not  been  unmindful  of  you  since  we  parted. 
No  man  rejoiced  more  than  I  did  in  hearing  of  your  gallant  behavior 
at  the  Three  Rivers,  and  General  Sullivan  can  witness  for  me  that 
when  He  repeated  any  anecdote  that  related  to  our  Army  in  Canada 
in  which  your  name  was  mentioned  with  respect,  I  felt,  and  showed 
the  same  satisfaction  that  I  should  have  done  had  he  been  lavishing 
encomiums  upon  a  brother. — You  will  hear  before  this  reaches  you 
that  the  command  of  General  Sinclair's  regiment  was  given  to  Col: 
Wood.  I  lament  with  you  Col :  Allen's  resignation,  and  loss  to  our 
Army,  but  I  believe  you  have  been  misinformed  as  to  his  motives 
in  that  transaction —  His  family  suffered  no  indignities  in  this 
State  but  such  as  they  in  some  degree  merited  by  their  opposition 
to  the  institution  of  a  new  government,  and  the  declaration  of  In- 
dependence— I  have  constantly  made  great  allowances  for  gentle- 
men of  moderate  sentiments,  and  still  class  several  of  them  among 
the  worthiest  of  my  friends,  but  I  think  it  no  breach  of  charity  to 
suppose  that  a  family  so  much  affected  in  power,  and  property  as 
the  one  above  mentioned  were  actuated  only  by  low,  and  interested 
motives. — 

My  seat  in  Congress  has  subjected  me  to  many  cares  to  which  I 
was  a  stranger  when  my  whole  business  consisted  in  reading — writ- 
ing— &  feeling  pulses. — I  am  obliged  daily  to  hear  the  most  melan- 
choly accounts  of  the  distresses  of  our  troops  from  wants  of  every 
kind — I  have  felt  a  large  share  of  the  pain  &  shame  brought  upon 
our  arms  by  the  desertion  of  Long  Island,  and  evacuation  of  New 
York.  The  military  spirit  of  our  country  men  seems  to  have  sub- 
sided in  that  part  of  the  continent,  and  a  torpor  seems  likewise  to 
have  seized  upon  the  citizens  of  America  in  general.  I  apprehend  we 
have  overrated  the  public  Virtue  of  our  country.  If  this  is  the  case, 
let  us  not  repine  at  misfortunes —  They  are  necessary  to  the  growth 
&  existence  of  patriotism.  History  shows  us  that  States  like  in- 
dividuals have  arisen  to  importance  only  when  their  foundations 
were  laid  in  difficulties  &  adversity.     We  received  so  many  pledges 


4o  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

during  the  last  Campaign  of  the  favor  and  protection  of  Heaven 
that  it  would  seem  a  species  of  infidelity  to  doubt  our  success  in 
the  issue  of  the  present  controversy. 

A  convention  has  at  last  formed  a  government  for  our  State. 
Herewith  I  send  you  a  copy  of  it  [Constitution  of  1776].  It  is  tho't 
by  many  people  to  be  rather  too  much  upon  the  democratical  order, 
for  liberty  is  as  apt  to  degenerate  into  luxuriousness,  as  power  is 
to  become  arbitrary.  Restraints  therefore  are  as  necessary  in  the 
former  as  in  the  latter  case.  Had  the  Governor  and  Council  in 
the  new  constitution  of  Pennsylvania  possessed  a  negative  upon 
the  proceedings  of  the  assembly,  the  government  would  have 
derived  safety — wisdom  &  dignity  from  it.  But  we  hope  the  Coun- 
cil of  Censors  will  remedy  this  defect  at  the  expiration  of  seven 
years. 

My  present  situation  requires  that  I  shou'd  possess  a  thorough 
knowledge  of  the  state  of  the  armies  of  the  Continent.  Let  me  beg 
of  you  therefore  to  furnish  me  every  week  (if  possible)  with  the 
history  of  every  material  occurrence  in  the  Northern  department. 
Tell  me  all  your  wants  whether  they  relate  to  provisions,  clothing, 
tents — ammunition  or  medicines —  I  could  wish  you  would  go  fur- 
ther, &  inform  [me]  what  officers,  and  what  brigades,  or  regiments 
stand  highest  with  you  for  courage — conduct,  and  military  discipline. 
Duty  &  inclination  will  prompt  me  to  do  every  thing  in  my  power 
to  remedy  abuses — correct  delays — and  reward  merit  of  every  kind 
in  the  Army. 

My  Comp'ts  await  Gen'l  Gates,  and  Gen'l  St.  Clair.  Tell  the  latter 
that  I  have  done  nothing  since  I  took  my  seat  in  Congress  with 
greater  pleasure  than  giving  my  Vote  for  making  him  a  Brigadier 
and  I  wish  for  nothing  more  than  to  do  the  same  justice  to  the  merit 
of  my  friend  Col:  Wayne.  Inter  nos — an  attention  in  you  to  Gen'l 
Gates  may  facilitate  this  matter  if  it  should  soon  come  before  Con- 
gress. 

Adieu,  my  dear  Anthony,  God  bless  you  !  &  bring  you  back  in 
safety  to  our  native  province  in  which  I  hope  to  spend  many  days 
with  you  in  the  enjoyment  of  that  freedom  for  which  we  are  both 
making  sacrifices  in  the  cabinet  &  field. 

Yours  sincerely 

B.  Rush. 


CANADIAN  CAMPAIGN  AND    TICONDEROGA.      41 


Colonel  Wayne  to  Dr.  Franklin  and  Mr.  Morton. 

Ticonderoga  2nd  Oct.  1776. 

Dear  Sir, — I  have  the  same  plea  for  not  answering  yours  of  the 
1 6th  of  Aug — as  you  had  when  you  wrote — i.e  want  of  time —  I 
observe  we  have  an  extraordinary  House  or  Convention  and  as  an 
extraordinary  Bench  of  the  peace — but  the  old  Adage  holds — that 
a  Desperate  Disorder — requires  a  Desperate  cure —  Our  Constitu- 
tion was  Convulsed — these  may  be  the  most  proper  state  Physicians 
to  restore  it  to  its  native  vigor — I  hope  they  will  effect  it —  I  am 
totally  unacquainted  with  your  Politicks  I  shall  therefore  waive  the 
subject — and  like  uncle  Toby  ride  my  own  hobby —  We  are  not 
a  little  surprised  at  the  evacuation  of  Long  Island — the  surrender  of 
that  was  the  opening  the  Door  to  the  Island  of  New  York — our 
people  can't  possibly  hold  that  place  when  the  North  &  East  Rivers 
are  free  for  the  enemy's  fleet.  They  will  even  have  it  in  their  power 
to  land  troops  on  the  Back  of  our  ports — an  Event  which  I  fear 
they  have  not  properly  Guarded  against.  If  so  the  sacrifice  of  4-5 
or  even  10,000  men  in  my  humble  Opinion  ought  to  be  made  rather 
than  to  have  given  up  ground  for  a  small  Misfortune — that  will  not 
only  supply  the  Enemy  with  Every  necessary  and  afford  them  Winter 
Quarters — but  reduce  us  to  the  hard  necessity  of  making  a  Winter 
Campaign  in  the  open  field  to  watch  their  motions — 

As  to  us — unless  the  Enemy  can  prevail  over  our  fleet — which  I 
think  will  be  no  easy  matter,  we  having  greatly  the  advantage  in  point 
of  time  and  materials  for  this  purpose,  which  Advantage  we  have 
Industriously  Improved — &  on  the  land  side  our  lines  are  strength- 
en'd  with  Redoubts — they  can  not  Carry  by  Storm — and  the  Season 
is  too  farre  Advanced  for  a  Regular  Seige  add  to  this  our  people  are 
in  high  spirits — tho'  poorly  and  thinly  clad — yet  they  will  sell  their 
Lives  &  Liberty  dear — the  fatigue  they  have  undergone  in  this  place 

is  Inexpressible,  yet  they  go  thro'  all  without  a  murmor — 

*  *  *  *  ***** 

Anth'y  Wayne. 
Colonel  Wayne  to  Dr.  Rush. 

Ticonderoga  18th  Oct'r  1776 
My  dear  Sir, — I  shall  not  attempt  to  give  my  Opinion  of  what 
Regiments  or  Officers  stand  highest  in  Esteem  for  military  Disci- 
pline or  Conduct — until  the   fortune  of  War  Determines  whether 


42  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

Americans  or  Britains  are  to  remain  masters  of  this  Ground — an 
event  which  in  all  probability  will  be  known  before  this  Reaches  you 
perhaps  in  a  few  hours — they  have  prevail'd  over  our  Fleet, — and 
are  within  fifteen  miles  of  this  place — the  first  fair  wind  brings  them 
up — when  I  am  Apprehensive  they  will  Oblige  us  to  meet  them  on 
Open  Ground — our  rear  being  in  a  great  measure  neglected — for  we 
always  depended  on  our  Fleet — as  the  Rear  Guard — that  Depend- 
ence is  now  at  an  end — and  if  they  Attack  us  in  that  Quarter  we 
shall  have  warm  work — it  will  not  be  cool  to  them  as  they  will  be 
exposed  to  the  fire  of  two  Batteries — upon  the  whole  I  am  Rather 
Inclined  to  think  they  will  strive  to  make  the  Assault  on  the  Penns'a 
lines  as  it  is  the  Ground  which  Commands  all  the  Other  works — if 
they  shou'd  be  so  hardy — I  am  almost  Confident  of  success — 

Our  Army  don't  Amount  to  more  than  6000  Effective  men — of 
which  something  less  than  One  half  i  e  about  2600  will  bear  the 
brunt  of  the  day — the  Remainder  being  on  Mount  Independance  on 
the  Opposite  Side  of  the  lake — I  can't  in  Justice  Omit  mentioning 
one  hundred  Pennsylvanians  who  arrived  here  last  Evening  from  lake 
George — where  they  were  lately  sent  for  the  Recovery  of  their  health 
to  the  Gen'l  Hospital — on  hearing  of  the  defeat  of  our  Fleet  they 
Immediately  returned  to  this  place  Determined  to  Conquer  or  die, 
with  their  Country  men — these  poor  Emaciated  worthy  fellows  are 
Entitled  to  more  merit  than  I  have  time  or  Ability  to  Describe. 

I  could  write  you  a  long  letter  Cont'g  a  list  of  Grieveances,  & 
such  Intelligence  as  you  Require  but  the  Enemy  will  not  permit  me 
— and  I  am  Call'd  to  Arms  by  an  Alarm  this  moment  Given — 
Adieu  my  Dear  friend  &  believe  me  yours  &c 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

Adjutant  Harper  to  Colonel  Wayne. 

Albany  Janu'y  31  1777 
Dear  Colonel, — Your  Regiment  march' d  from  this  Place  yester- 
day morning — but  the  Soldiers  were  so  dispersed  through  the  Town 
that  It  was  with  the  Greatest  Dificulty  that  wee  got  them  together — 
The  place  was  so  full  of  Recruiting  Parties  Endeavouring  to  enlist 
them  that  two  thirds  of  them  were  drunk —  The  Recruiting  Officers 
here  Rather  than  miss  a  Pennsylvanian  would  sit  and  drink  with  him 
all  night — they  Even  have  Gone  into  the  Hospitals  and  enlisted  Our 


CANADIAN  CAMPAIGN  AND    TICONDEROGA.      43 

Sick,  some  of  whom  were  Re-enlisted  before  Viz  Short  of  Capt. 
Poth  Company  and  Jones  a  Silver  Smith  of  Capt.  Morris,  they  tried 
two  Days  ago  and  are  to  be  punished — 

********* 

Colonel  Johnston  to  Richard  Peters,  Secretary  of  Board  of  War. 

Oct  20,  '76. 

If  you  shou'd  think  proper,  you  may  publish  the  following  Para- 
graph, in  regard  to  our  Penn'a  soldiers — "  It  appears  to  me  that  the 
Pennsylvanians  were  originally  designed  for  Soldiers,  their  Vigi- 
lance, assiduity  &  resignation  to  bad  Usage,  fatigue  &  ye  strictest 
Discipline  convinces  me — their  bravery  too  &  enthusiasm  in  the 
Service  are  equally  remarkable — 

"There  is  an  Anecdote  respecting  them,  which  I  cannot  omit 
mentioning — as  soon  as  the  News  of  the  Defeat  of  our  Fleet  reach'd 
Fort  George,  the  Pennsylvanians  who  had  been  laid  up  in  the  Hos- 
pitals emaciated  with  Disease  &  Sickness  of  the  most  malignant  kind, 
even  some  of  them  with  Discharges  in  their  Pockets,  without  Orders 
or  the  least  compulsion,  fix'd  on  their  Military  Accoutraments  & 
crossed  the  Lake  to  our  Assistance,  swearing  by  every  thing  sacred 
they  wou'd  have  ample  revenge — 

"As  two  Privates  of  the  first  Bat'n  Commanded  by  Col.  De  Haas 
pass'd  thro'  our  Encampment  on  their  return,  they  were  asked  if  no 
more  of  the  Penn'as  were  coming  to  w'h  they  answ'd  with  Indigna- 
tion *  Yes,  blast  your  Eyes,  every  sick  man  amongst  us  that  cou'd 
possibly  crawl,  but  we  lead  the  Van  from  our  Rank' — this  they  Did 
while  other  pusilanimous  wretches  had  their  whole  thoughts  entirely 
bent  upon  Home — " 

I  can  add  no  more,  as  the  Divine  says,  so  present  my  Love  to  Mr 
&  Mrs  Delany  &  God  bless  you  both — 

I  am  sincerely  Yours  &c 

F:  Johnston. 

Colonel  Johnston  to  Colonel  Wayne. 

Albany  17th  Nov'r,  1776 — 
Dear  Col'l, — I  rec'd  your  agreeable  Letter  of  the  12th  inst't  from 
the  Hand  of  Col :  Lewis     Its  Contents  serve  as  a  farther  Proof  of  the 
friendship  you  bear  me — 

I  shall  ever  embrace  the  opportunities  put  in  my  way,  of  acknowl- 


44  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

edging  the  several  kindnesses  you  confer  on  me — &  use  my  utmost 
diligence  to  repay  them — 

I  find  you  have  engaged  the  Interests  of  Gen'l  Gates  St  Clair  & 
Col:  De  Haas  in  my  favor  I  shall  never  forget  this  signal  piece  of 
service —  I  have  been  assiduous  in  my  Endeavours  to  enlist,  but  all 
such  as  are  fit  for  the  service  are  already  engaged,  the  Others  are 
only  Food  for  Worms — miserable  sharp  looking  Caitiffs,  hungry  lean 
fac'd  Villains  &c  &c. 

Your  Letter,  joined  to  the  services  w'h  I  apprehend  I  can  perform 
in  Penn'a,  have  determin'd  me  to  proceed —  Let  me  add  to  this 
Poor  Tom  [Robinson]  is  so  weak  yet,  that  I  must  not  part  with 
him —  On  my  Arrival,  I  propose  to  open  my  Quarters  near  Ches- 
ter &  send  out  trusty  Serjeants  for  the  purpose  of  recruiting  our  Regi- 
ment ;  As  Wallace  &  Funk  cannot  join  us  again  with  propriety,  I 
suppose  I  may  Venture  to  promise  a  worthy  fellow  an  Ensignsy,  & 
Dispatch  him  thro'  the  Country  in  search  of  Recruits — 

I  find  myself  greatly  recovered  but  still  continue  weak — riding  on 
Horse  back  will  fully  effect  my  Cure —  I  shou'd  most  assuredly  have 
visited  Tye  this  week,  but  your  Letter  induces  me  (as  I  before  ob- 
serv'd)  to  go  on —  I  cannot  part  with  you  thus —  The  news  of  this 
place  I  must  transmit  you — 

It  is  said  here  that  Howe's  Army  have  cross'd  over  to  the  Jersey 
side,  &  that  our  Army  means  to  accompany  them  wherever  they 
go —  It  is  likewise  reported,  that  a  Strong  Detachment  of  the  Enemy 
are  in  the  rear  of  Fort  Montgomery,  w'h  you  know  is  totally  un- 
defended—  It  is  very  observable,  that  all  the  American  Fortifica- 
tions are  defenceless  in  the  rear  &  ever  left  unguarded —  Oh  the 
miserable  State  of  this  Country !  As  we  are  obliged  to  place  our 
Dependance  on  such  miserable  Engineers — 

Whether  this  be  Albany  News  w'h  I  have  just  related,  or  real  fact 
I  know  not,  but  certain  it  is ;  Orders  have  been  issued  that  all  the 
Batteaus,  Boats  &c  &c  shall  immediately  be  sent  down  the  North 
River  to  transport  our  Army —  Indeed  I  have  heard  that  the  Bat- 
teaus in  &  about  Lake  George  must  be  carried  in  Waggons  to  Fort 
Edw'd  &  from  thence  forwarded  here — if  this  be  true,  then  the  Army 
at  Tye  will  naturally  retreat  for  want  of  Provisions — 

I  could  here  criticize  &  animadvert  largely  on  the  Conduct  of 
great  men  in  the  service  of  the  States,  on  their  Counsels,  their  Milt- 


CANADIAN  CAMPAIGN  AND    TICONDEROGA.     45 

tary  knowledge  &c  but  this  is  unnecessary,  as  you  are  fully  capable  of 
comparing  things  with  each  other  &  drawing  just  Inferences —  My 
friend  Sec'y  Peters  informs  me  of  Col:  Shee's  Resignation  which 
has  completely  ruin'd  him —  He  urges  me  strenuously  by  no  means 
to  follow  his  Example,  I  trust  in  Heaven,  I  never  shall,  tho',  I  must 
confess  it  chagrin'd  me  to  see  a  Dutch  Tavern  keeper  &  a  fat  son  of 
Epicurus  promoted  over  my  Head —  Men  with  calmer  Passions  & 
possess' d  of  more  Stoicism  than  I,  would  shew  their  Resentment  on 
the  like  Occasion —  Mr.  Peters  further  adds — "things  are  in  great 
Confusion  in  our  State,  the  Conventie  tho  Datnnatic  Conveniie  have 
produced  a  sickly  Constitution,  not  worth  defending" — however  I 
shall  not  have  Paper  suff 't  to  make  the  necessary  Quotations  I  there- 
fore refer  you  to  his  Letter  w'h  I  have  inclosed — 
My  dear  Sir,  I  must  bid  you  adieu — 

from  yours  sincerely 

F.  Johnston — 

P.S.  Capt'n  Robinson  sends  a  deal  of  respects  Compl't  &c  to  you 
&  desires  you  not  to  neglect  to  mention  his  name  in  your  Letters,  as 
you  may  th  [torn  out]  he  merits —  The  */%  y'rs  you  sent  Home 
p  [torn  out]  for  ^5 :  4 — get  more  if  you  can  F.  J. 

Colonel  Wayne  to  Sharp  Delany. 

Ticonderoga  15th  Dec'r  1776 
My  dear  Delany, — Last  night  has  frozen  Lake  Cham  plain  to  the 
Centre — it  is  all  one  solid  mass  of  Ice — our  poor  fellows  severely 
felt  the  Effect  of  it — for  my  own  part  I  was  so  Congeal' d  that  after 
turning  before  the  fire  for  three  hours  by  Shrewsbury  Clock — I  was  not 
half  thawed  until  I  put  one  Bottle  of  wine  under  my  Sword  Belt  at 
Dinner —  I  have  been  toasting  you  all  but  can't  toast  myself— for 
by  the  time  that  one  side  is  warm  the  other  is  froze  ;  however  I'll  still 
keep  to  the  Internal  Application — here's  God  bless  you  all  and  now 
let  me  ask  you  a  few  Questions.  Who  of  our  friends  were  killed 
or  taken  at  Fort  Washington? — was  it  Carried — by  Surprise  or 
Storm? —  Is  Gen'l  Washington  still  Retreating — has  he  lost  all  his 
heavy  Cannon  ? — dare  the  Enemy  venture  into  the  Country  in  pur- 
suit of  him —  Are  our  people  so  used  to  stand  behind  works  that 
they  dare  not  face  the  foe  in  the  field —  That — that  is  the  Rock  we 
have  split  on.    Our  time  has  been  Intirely  taken  up  in  making  lines 


46  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

&c  and  no  attention  paid  to  Manoeuvring — our  Defenses  by  some 
fatality  have  been  all  so  planed  that  when  ever  the  Enemy  could  get 
in  our  Rear —  *  *  *  *  *  * 

In  regard  to  discipline  we  understood  by  this  only  to  put  a  neces- 
sary Constraint  on  the  principle  of  freedom  to  prevent  it  growing 
into  licentiousness  which  it  unavoidably  would  if  not  Curbed  in  an 
army — here  I  must  once  more  call  in  the  aid  of  Marshal  Saxe — he 
says — and  he  says  well — "that  it  is  a  false  notion,  that  subordina- 
tion, and  a  passive  Obedience  to  Superiors,  is  any  Debasement  of  a 
mans  Courage — so  far  from  it,  that  it  is  a  General  remark — that 
those  Armies  that  have  been  subject  to  the  severest  Discipline  have 
always  performed  the  Greatest  things" — 

I  could  say  much  on  this  subject —  I  shall  for  my  own  part  En- 
deavor to  put  it  into  practice  as  far  as  in  my  power  as  I  am  well 
Convinced  that  we  shall  never  Establish  our  Liberties  until  we  learn 
to  beat  the  English  Rebels  in  the  field — I  hope  the  day  is  not  far  off. 

An  other  Campaign  or  two  if  our  people  are  well  Appointed, 
Clothed  and  Victualed  may  Effect  it — present  my  best  Compliments 
to  Mrs.  Delany  and  all  friends  and  believe  me  D'r  Sir 

Yours  most  Sincerely 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

P.S.  Col  Johnston  &  Doct'r  Kennedy  will  give  you  an  Acc't  of 
our  Situation —  Tell  Mr  Sect'y  of  War,  he  shall  never  have  my 
benediction  unless  he  sends  troops  to  relieve  us  soon — 

Colonel  Wayne  to  Richard  Peters,  Secretary  of  War. 

Ticonderoga  1st  December  1776 
Dear  Sir, — An  express  just  arrived  brings  advice  of  Fort  Wash- 
ington being  in  the  Hands  of  the  Enemy  and  the  whole  Garrison 
Consisting  of  2000  men  being  killed  or  Prisoners,  and  that  our 
people  are  on  the  Jersey  side  Retreating  from  post  to  post.  Is  the 
Genius  of  America  fled  our  Arms? — is  she  ashamed  to  associate 
with  her  Degenerate  sons ;  or  does  She  Esteem  them  as  Aliens,  un- 
worthy her  protection.  Are  not  the  Enemy  as  Vulnerable  as  us; — 
cuts  not  our  Swords  as  keen ; — pierce  not  our  Balls  as  deep  as 
theirs? — they  do — why  then  this  terror — why  shrink  as  from  a  Gor- 
gon's head  whenever  they  appear.  Oh !  my  dear  Sir,  I  but  too 
well  know  the  Occasion.     If  you  have  any  Regard  for  the  Liberty 


CANADIAN  CAMPAIGN  AND   TICONDEROGA.      47 

of  your  Country ; — or  the  Honour  of  America,  Embody  the  South- 
ern Troops  by  themselves;  give  more  Attention  to  Maneuvering — 
and  less  to  working  and  rest  Assured  of  Success — 

I  thank  my  God  we  are  left  partly  alone — I  have  yet  1500  hardy 
Veterans  from  Penn'a,  would  to  Heaven  I  could  for  a  day  lead  them 
to  the  Assistance  of  poor  Washington ; — I  would  Risque  my  soul, 
that  they  would  sell  their  lives,  or  Liberties  at  too  dear  a  Rate  for 
Britons  to  make  many  purchases —  I  wrote  to  Doct'r  Rush  a  few 
days  since  and  forgot  to  Enclose  him  the  State  of  this  Garrison — 
you  will  please  to  show  it  him — and  please  to  let  me  know  which  of 
our  friends  are  lost  at  Fort  Wash'g'n —  Some  CatirT  or  Envious 
Dev-1  prevents  any  Intelligence  Reaching  here  unless  it  Militates 
against  us —  I  have  just  now  Rec'd  a  letter  from  Delany  Dated 
17th  Sep'r — make  my  excuse  to  him  for  not  sending  an  answering 
it  at  this  time,  give  my  love  to  my  Daughter  and  believe  me  yours 
Most 

Sincerely 
A.  Wayne. 

Colonel  Wayne  to  General  Schuyler. 

Ticonderoga  2nd  Jan'y  1777 

Dear  General, — I  herewith  send  you  a  Return  of  this  Garrison 
as  also  of  the  Soldiers  re-engaged  to  serve  during  the  War — which  are 
but  few —  "  Liberty  to  come  down  for  one  month  when  Relieved" 
carries  with  it  an  Idea  of  being  Immediately  sent  back  again  to  a 
place  which  they  Imagine  to  be  very  unhealthy; — they  say;  march 
us  off  this  Ground  and  then  we  will  Cheerfully  Re-engage  ;  add  to 
this  their  anxiety  about  their  friends  in  the  Jerseys  and  Penns'a 
makes  them  Impatient  to  be  led  to  the  assistance  of  their  Distressed 
Country 

They  likewise  see  the  Eastern  people  Running  away  in  the  Clouds 
of  the  Night — (some  before  and  all  soon  as  their  times  expires). 
Col  Whitcombs  Regiment — all  the  Sailors  &  Mariners — the  whole  of 
the  Artificers  and  all  the  Corps  of  Artillery  except  Capt.  Roman's 
Company  (which  consists  but  of  12  men  Officers  Included)  are  gone 
off  the  Ground 

Notwithstanding  so  bad  an  example — and  the  distress  of  their 
native  State — the  Pennsylvanians,  will  not  leave  me  until  fresh 
troops  arrive  to  Relieve  them 


48  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 


Your  own  feelings  Sir  on  the  Alarming  Situation  of  Affairs  in 
Penns'a  and  Jersey ;  will  best  Inform  you  of  that  of  every  Other 
Officer  and  Soldier  (from  those  States)  on  the  Present  Occasion  : 
which  causes  us  most  Ardently  to  wish  for  an  Opportunity  of  meet- 
ing those  Sons  of  War  and  Rapine — face  to  face  ;  and  man  to  man. 

These  worthy  fellows  are  Second  to  none  in  Courage  (I  have  seen 
them  proved") — and  I  know  that  they  are  not  far  behind  any  Regulars 
in  Point  of  Discipline —  Such  troops,  actuated  by  Principle,  and 
fired  with  just  Resentment  must  be  an  Acceptable,  and  perhaps  season- 
able Re-inforcement  to  Gen'l  Washington  at  this  Critical  Juncture — 

If  you  shou'd  be  of  the  same  Opinion  and  cause  us  to  be  Imme- 
diately relieved — with  Orders  to  march  with  all  Dispatch  to  join  the 
main  Army — I  believe  we  shou'd  be  able  to  Re-enlist  the  Chief  part 
of  our  people  on  the  way :  however  this  may  be  I  wou'd  answer  for 
it  that  they  will  not  turn  aside  from  Danger  (altho  their  terms  shou'd 
be  expired)  when  the  safety  and  Honor  of  their  Country  Require 
them  to  face  it — 

I  must  Once  more  earnestly  Request  you  to  Order  up  shoes  and 
soap — we  are  much  Distressed  for  want  of  these  Necessary  Articles — 

Doct'r  M'Crea  arrived  last  night  with  some  Medicine — but  Hos- 
pital Stores,  roots  and  Vegitables  we  are  totally  Destitute  of 

I  am  Dear  General 
Your  Most  Ob't 
Hum'l  Ser't 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

[Gen'l  Schuyler.] 

Colonel  Wayne  to  General  Schuyler. 

Ticonderoga  22d  Jany.  1777 

Dear  Gen'l, — Col  Simons  Reg't  Col  Robinsons  Reg't  Consisting 
of  about  700  men  Officers  Included  are  now  Arrived  together  with 
24  men  of  Col  Warner's  Regiment — 

In  Consequence  I  have  Ordered  One  Reg't  of  the  Penns'a  to 
march  tomorrow.  The  Others  will  follow  as  soon  as  Possible  with 
Orders  to  Proceed  in  Good  Order  to  Phil'a —  I  have  Lately  Rec'd 
letters  from  Gen'l  St.  Clair  and  other  Gent'm  in  Gen'l  Washing- 
ton's Camp  which  made  me  think  it  Advisable  to  keep  these  Regt's 
Embodied  until  they  are  Dismissed  by  the  Board  of  War  : — their  time 


CANADIAN  CAMPAIGN  AND    TICONDEROGA.      49 

expired  the  5th  of  this  Instant :  they  are  to  be  settled  with  in  Phil'a 
agreeable  to  Promise,  when  I  have  Reason  to  expect  the  greatest  part 
will  Reengage — 

I  want  much  to  go  also — it  would  be  in  my  Power  to  do  more  with 
them  in  case  of  necessity  than  perhaps  any  other  Officer :  I  know 
these  worthy  fellows  well  and  they  know  me —  I  am  Confident  they 
would  not  Desert  me  in  a  time  of  Danger —  If  you  think  it  would 
be  for  the  benefit  of  the  Service — I  shou'd  be  glad  to  be  Imme- 
diately Relieved  in  Command  with  Orders  to  march  with  the  last  of 
the  Southern  troops. 

For  the  present  I  am  using  every  Effort  to  Render  this  place  strong. 
I  shall  soon  Complete  the  Abattis  Round  the  Old  fort,  and  Octagons 
on  Mt.  Independence,  and  two  New  Blockhouses  ;  so  that  in  a  few 
days  we  hope  to  Render  this  post  tenable  and  leave  it  in  a  much 
securer  and  better  state  than  we  found  it — the  manner  in  which  I 
have  kept  our  Guards  and  Sentries  and  the  Constant  Succession  of 
Scouts  which  I  have  out — if  followed  by  my  successor — will  Effect- 
ually prevent  a  surprise ;  you  will  please  to  Order  the  Other  troops 
Destin'd  for  this  Garrison  to  be  forward'd  with  all  Possible  Dis- 
patch— 

Interim  I  am  D'r  Sir 

Yours  Most  Sincerely 

Ant'v  Wayne. 

[Genl  Schuyler.] 

Colonel  Wayne  to  Sharp  Delany — Extract. 

20  Feb.  77 
******** 
I  must  now  in  Confidence  tell  you  that  this  post  has  been  most 
shamefully  neglected — all  the  old  and  good  Troops  are  gone — none 
here  but  a  few  wretched   militia — badly  armed  and  worse  Disci- 
plined— 

This  Garrison  at  this  time  Ought  to  Consist  of  at  least  5000  Ef- 
fective men — with  a  well  trained  Corps  of  Artillery — perhaps  Con- 
gress thinks  it  does.  I  have  not  One  fifth  part  of  that  number  on 
the  Ground — and  I  would  much  Rather  Risque  my  life,  Reputa- 
tion, and  the  fate  of  America  on  400  Good  Troops,  than  the  Whole 
of  the  present  Garrison. 

5 


5o  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

This  is  the  Situation  of  the  Second  post  in  the  United  States — 
the  Neighboring  Governments  are  now  roused — and  I  expect  in  a 
few  days  to  be  strongly  Re-enforced —  A  body  of  the  Enemy  were 
Discovered  a  few  days  since  marching  this  way  by  two  Canadians — 
who  are  gone  to  Albany — this  has  awaked  Gen'l  Schuyler  and  Others 
(whose  business  it  was  to  send  Troops)  from  their  Lethargy — 

We  may  probably  have  some  Diversion  in  a  few  Hours — I  have 
yet  some  good  men  on  whom  I  can  Depend — and  I  will  be  answer- 
able for  the  maintainance  of  this  post  until  succour  can  Arrive. 
Adieu  my  Dear  Delany,  and  believe  me  still  your  Friend 

And  most  Ob't 

Hum  Ser't 

Ant'y  Wayne. 
[S.  Delany,  Esqr.] 

Colonel  Wayne  was  appointed  brigadier-general  in 
February,  1777.  It  was  hoped  by  his  friends  that  he 
would  return  home  for  a  short  season  and  help  to  bring 
order  out  of  the  confusion  into  which  public  affairs 
then  had  been  thrown  in  Pennsylvania. 

Sharp  Delany  to  Colonel  Wayne. 

Philad'a  28th  March  1777 
My  Dear  General, — To  wish  my  Friend  Joy  or  congratulate 
him  on  his  advancement  to  the  Rank  of  B:  General,  would  seem  as 
if  I  did  not  thoroughly  know  him — but  to  me  your  merits  are  suffi- 
ciently known  I  am  firmly  persuaded  that  office  could  not  be  better 
or  more  properly  given — &  ought  long  ere  now —  Your  last  gave  me 
true  friendly  pain — since  Sept'r  &  not  a  line  from  Family  or  Friends 
when  to  my  knowledge  you  ought  to  have  rec'd  many —  Yesterday 
I  came  from  East-town  &  left  all  very  well  tho  strong  in  expectation 
of  your  long  wished  arrival —  Tho'  I  share  in  every  one  of  your  hon- 
ours— yet  believe  me  I  could  wish  you  had  not  left  us — more  may  be 
done  by  you  in  the  distracted  state  of  our  Government — than  per- 
haps would  balance  the  many  gallant  &  beneficial  actions  you  have 
done  for  your  Country  in  Canada.  To  point  them  out  in  a  letter 
would  be  impossible  which  is  the  reason  I  have  but  slightly  touched 
on  them  in  former  letters.     When  I  have  the  great  pleasure  to  see 


CANADIAN  CAMPAIGN  AND    TICONDEROGA.      51 

you  here — I  shall  give  you  a  long  talk,  showing  the  weakness,  folly, 
Ambition  of  politicians.  Before  matters  are  brought  right  you  may 
be  Witness,  you  must  be  witness  to  all  of  them. 

I  never  yet  flattered  myself  you  could  have  been  spared  on  Acct 
of  the  Importance  of  the  Post  you  command — till  properly  relieved, 
— tho  all  other  of  your  friends  were  sure  of  your  coming —  Gen'l 
Greene  a  few  days  since  informed  me  a  G'l  Patterson  was  to  take 
charge  of  Ticond'a  chiefly  for  your  coming  home  which  only  gives 
me  the  hope  of  seeing  you — busy  scenes  may  perhaps  induce  you  to 
give  your  Services  to  your  Country  without  any  intermission — but 
let  me  my  Friend,  advise  &  beg  of  you,  to  come  first .  home,  & 
gratify  your  Friends  &  put  new  life  in  your  Family  &  Mother  who 
really  pine  for  the  beloved  Husband,  Father  &  Son.  You  are  the 
only  military  man  I  know  who  has  been  so  long  on  Duty — nor  is  it 
to  be  expected  or  thought  the  whole  man  should  or  could  be  ab- 
sorbed by  one  line  of  Duty — come  then  once  more  let  me  ask  it,  & 
speedily  to  your  desiring  Friends,  &  in  a  time  we  will  again  restore 
you  to  the  Continent.  I  have  need  of  you  myself  for  many  ac- 
counts—  I  have  been  in  the  field,  if  to  be  as  I  was  may  be  called 
so — would  to  God  our  militia  were  better  regulated —  I  was 
honoured  by  the  Assembly  with  the  Post  of  Lieu't  of  the  City  with 
Rank  of  Col'l  Command't  so  that  you  see  I  may  have  been  at  head 
of  the  militia  of  our  State  but  declined  it — for  reasons  I  know  will 
be  pleasing  to  you,  when  I  can  see  and  converse  with  you.  Mr. 
Johnston  having  but  a  few  minutes  to  wait,  will  excuse  the  form  & 
manner  of  this  letter  as  I  was  all  the  week  with  my  Family  at  Hun- 
ters near  you — but  away  with  excuses — as  my  Friend  I  know  believes 
I  could  not  neglect  him — he  will  receive  all  from  me  as  corning 
from  a  friendly  Heart,  which  I  assure  will  ever  be  so  while  it  is  the 
property  of 

Sharp  Delany. 


P.S.     Had  I  expected  this  opportunity,  would  have  bro't  a  letter 
from  Mrs  Wayne  &  Mother. 

The  condition  of  the   military  hospitals  within,  the 
territory  occupied  by  Colonel  Wayne  was,  it  seems, 


52  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

such  as  required  immediate  attention.     He  writes  thus 
to  George  Clymer,  member  of  Congress : 

Ticonderoga  15th  Dec'r  1776 

Dear  Sir, — Before  this  reaches  you — you  will  almost  forget  that 
there  are  some  people  yet  Remaining  at  Ticonderoga  who  realy 
Esteem  your  friendship — but  how  long  that  will  be  the  case  I  cannot 
say ; — as  Death  that  Grisly  Horrid  Monster — that  Caitiff  who  Dis- 
tinguishes neither  the  Gentleman,  nor  the  Soldier,  age,  Sex  or  State 
is  daily  making  dreadful  Havock  amongst  us  the  Pennsylvanians : 
I  have  buried  out  of  my  own  Regiment  since  you  left  this  Ground 
upwards  of  fifty  men  I  believe  I  have  once  already  told  you  that 
in  my  Opinion  it  was  the  last  part  of  God's  work,  the  ancient  Gol- 
gotha— Certain  it  is  that  the  Supreme  Being  never  Intended  man- 
kind to  live  in  it — as  few,  very  few  who  have  Attempted  to  make  a 
Lodgment,  or  any  stay  survived  the  Sword — the  pestilence  or  famine. 

We  are  at  present  threatened  by  all  three — notwithstanding  we 
shall  have  the  hardiness  to  brave  them  out  until  properly  Relieved  : 
— for  my  own  part  if  I  am  doomed  to  fall  by  either — I  wou'd  chuse 
the  first  as  being  the  most  Honorable  (altho  not  the  most  likely  to 
take  place  at  the  present) 

This  you  may  Depend  on  as  fact  that  out  of  the  three  Pennsyl- 
vania Regiments,  which  I  have  with  me,  &  who  Marched  full  two 
thousand  Effective  men  into  this  Country,  Officers  Included,  I  shall 
not  bring  home  more  than  Nine  Hundred ;  and  the  most  of  those 
Emaciated — worn  out  and  unfit  for  further  duty — 

Perhaps  keeping  us  here  so  long  was  not  bad  policy  in  one  sense ; 
as  it  has  prevented  the  people  at  large  from  knowing  the  hardships 
and  Miseries  these  poor  fellows  have  endured  (on  this  Infectious 
Spot)  the  bare  Recital  of  which  wou'd  shock  Humanity.  The 
Regulars T  thought  Crown  Point  vastly  preferable  to  this  in  point  of 
health  and  Strength — they  found  it  Absolutely  Necessary  to  Relieve 
the  Garrison  once  a  fortnight  from  Crown  Point — and  they  expended 
a  Million  Sterling  in  fortifying  that  place — the  work  we  have  done 
here  would  have  Render'd  that  stronger  than  ever — and  unless  we 
foreclose  the  English  Rebels  by  taking  post  there  next  Spring,  they 

*  The  English  army. 


CANADIAN  CAMPAIGN  AND    TICONDEROGA.      53 

will  give  us  more  trouble  than  many  Gentlemen  are  aware  of  and 
profit  by  our  Mistake. 

I  must  Request  you  to  use  your  Utmost  Endeavors  in  getting  us 
Relieved  as  soon  as  Possible — as  the  time  for  which  our  people  are 
Engaged  expires  in  three  weeks — the  New  England  troops  go  home 
in  fifteen  days — the  General  wou'd  not  keep  them  one  moment 
longer  than  the  first  of  Jan'y.  I  hope  to  prevail  on  our  troops  to 
stay  with  me  until  Others  come  to  Relieve  them — but  no  time  is  to 
be  lost,  you'l  not  neglect  to  Inform  Congress  that  we  are  Enlisted 
but  till  the  5th  of  Jan'y. 

Interim  I  am  D'r  Sir 

Your  Most  Ob't 
Hum'l  Serv't 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

Colonel  Wayne  had  previously  written  (December  4) 
on  the  same  subject  to  the  Council  of  Safety:  "The 
wretched  condition  the  battalions  are  now  in  for  want 
of  every  necessary  except  flour  and  bad  beef  is  shock- 
ing to  humanity  and  beggars  all  description —  We 
have  neither  beds  nor  bedding  for  our  sick  to  lay  on  or 
under,  other  than  their  own  clothing;  no  medicine  or 
regimen  suitable  for  them  ;  the  dead  and  the  dying 
lying  mingled  together  in  our  hospital  or  rather  house 
of  carnage  is  no  uncommon  sight."  And  again  to 
General  Gates :  "  We  can't  send  them  to  Fort  George 
as  usual — the  Hospital  Being  Removed  from  thence  to 
Albany — and  the  Weather  so  Intensely  cold,  that  before 
they  would  reach  there  they  would  perish — it  lays 
much  in  your  Power  by  a  proper  Representation  to 
Congress  to  have  these  defects  Supplied — and  many 
other  Abuses  Redressed,  that  tend  to  Render  the  Ser- 
vice almost  Intolerable  to  men  and  Officers,  but  as 
you  are  a  much  better  Judge  of  those  Matters  than  I, 
I  shall  say  no  more  on  the  Subject." 


54  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 


Colonel  Wayne  to  Colonel  Johnston  concerning  his  Regiment. 

Ticonderoga  1 2th  Jany.  1777 

Dear  Col., — I  snatch  my  pen  to  give  you  &  flemish  Acct.  of  your 
Regiment —  The  Commander  of  all  Armies  has  taken  to  himself  on 
this  Ground  from  first  to  last  200 — he  has  marked  13  more  for  his 
service  which  I  expect  he  will  Draft  in  a  few  days —  I  have  sent 
you  87  Invalids  least  he  should  take  a  fancy  to  them  and  I  have  a 
few  more  hid  Ready  to  send  by  the  next  opportunity —  I  hope  to 
follow  in  a  week  or  two  with  about  300,  being  the  Remainder  and 
as  brave  fellows  as  ever  faced  an  Enemy :  of  these  there  are  about 
150  Re-Engaged  during  the  war,  and  we  probably  may  Inlist  150 
more  by  the  time  we  arrive  in  Phil'a  which  I  believe  will  not  be 
before  the  first  of  March — 

We  hear  your  city  has  become  a  Deserted  Village — and  that  the 
British  Rebels  and  their  Savage  Auxiliaries  on  their  march  through 
the  Jerseys  Committed  the  most  Horrid  Devastation — and  were 
guilty  of  Crimes  shocking  to  Humanity,  and  which  modesty  forbids 
to  mention — 

I  expect  to  march  at  the  Head  of  about  1200  Pennsylvanians  and 
Jerseymen  well  Appointed,  Disciplined  and  Determined  who  all  call 
loudly  on  me  to  them  to  take  a  just  Revenge  or  to  meet  a  Glorious 
Death— 

I  am  D'r  Sir  ever  yours  most 
Sincerely, 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

P.S.  My  best  Compliments  to  Delany  and  all  friends —  Tell  them 
it  is  my  honest  wish  to  meet  an  Equal  Number  of  the  Enemy  on  my 
March — when  they  may  Rest  Assured  I  shall  either  soon  make  them 
pay  dear  for  their  past  Conduct  or  stand  in  no  need  of  any  Pro- 
tection for  my  Conduct — 


[Col.  Johnston.] 


The  following  letter  gives  some  idea  of  the  embar- 
rassment due  to  short  enlistments  in  the  Army  of  the 
Revolution,  and  the  difficulty  of  enforcing  discipline : 


CANADIAN  CAMPAIGN  AND    TICONDEROGA.      55 

Colonel  Wayne  to  General  Schuyler. 

Ticonderoga  1 2th  Feb'y  1777 

Dear  General, — I  was  favoured  with  yours  of  the  7th  Ultimo 
Yesterday — and  shall,  agreeable  to  your  Desire,  keep  a  pair  of  fleet 
Horses  at  a  place  called  the  Red  House — about  five  Miles  North  of 
Crown  Point,  where  a  small  advanced  Post  is  absolutely  necessary — 
for  which  purpose  I  shall  Detatch  a  trusty  Officer  and  fifteen  or 
Twenty  men — still  Continuing  the  scouting  parties  as  usual — 

Our  Garrison  is  now  very  weak.  If  you  have  any  good  troops — 
be  they  ever  so  few — pray  send  them  on  with  all  possible  Despatch. 

After  the  Jersey  Troops  are  gone,  I  must  in  Confidence  assure  you 
— that  I  would  much  Rather  risk  my  life  and  reputation,  and  the 
fate  of  America  on  two  Hundred  Good  Soldiers, — than  on  all  those 
now  on  the  Ground  who  will  be  left  behind  them — many  of  whom 
are  Children,  twelve  or  fifteen  years  of  age —  In  time  they'l  make 
good  men — as  yet  they  are  too  young — add  to  this  that  they  have 
but  about  one  month  to  stay — and  are  badly  armed  and  the  Officers 
Enemies  to  Discipline. 

I  am  in  the  next  place  to  Acquaint  you  that  Yesterday  morning 
at  Gun  fire  I  was  Informed  that  Capt.  Nelsons  Rifle  Company — who 
used  to  do  duty  in  my  Regiment — were  under  arms  with  their  Packs 
slung  ready  to  March  and  Determined  to  force  their  way  through 
all  Opposition.  On  my  Arrival  at  their  Encampment — I  found  them 
drawn  up  in  Order,  and  beginning  their  March.  On  asking  the 
cause  of  such  Conduct,  they  began  in  a  tumultuous  manner  to  In- 
form me  that  their  time  of  Enlistment  was  expired  last  month,  and 
that  they  looked  upon  themselves  as  at  Liberty  to  go  home —  I  Or- 
dered them  to  Halt — that  I  could  not  Answer  them  all  at  once — 
I  directed  their  leader  to  step  out  and  speak  for  them :  A  Serg't 
Advanced — I  presented  a  Pistol  to  his  Breast — he  fell  on  his  knees 
to  beg  his  life — I  then  ordered  the  Whole  to  ground  their  Arms — 
which  was  immediately  complied  with : — I  then  Addressed  them 
when  they  with  one  voice  agreed  to  Remain  until  the  20th  Instant 
and  Return  to  their  duty. 

This  was  scarce  over  when  a  Certain  Jonah  Holida  of  Capt. 
Coe's  Company  in  Col  Robinsons  Regiment — Endeavored  to  excite 
them  to  Mutiny  again — as  you  will  see  by  the  within  Deposition — 
Interrogating  him  on  the  Occasion  he  Justified  his  Conduct —    I 


56  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

thought  proper  to  Chastise  him  for  his  Insolence  on  the  spot  before 
the  men — and  then  sent  him  to  answer  for  his  Crime  to  the  main 
Guard. 

The  Colonel  waited  on  me  and  very  Innocently  Informed  me 
that  he  had  a  Complaint  lodged  with  him  against  me  that  he  was 
Sorry  for  it — but  was  obliged  to  take  notice  of  it,  and  then  De- 
livered the  within  paper — 

On  Inquiring  I  found  it  was  wrote  by  Capt.  Coe —  I  had  him 
brought  before  me —  He  Acknowledged  the  writing — and  also  that 
he  knew  the  cause  for  which  his  Soldier  was  Struck  and  Confined — 
but  was  of  Opinion  that  every  Soldier  had  a  Right  to  Deliver  his 
Sentiments  on  every  Occasion  without  being  punished  upon  which  I 
Ordered  him  in  Arrest  as  an  Abettor  of  the  Mutiny —  I  wait  for  your 
Orders  to  send  them  down  to  Albany — where  you  will  take  such 
further  Measures  as  you  may  deem  necessary —  To  try  them  here 
by  their  Own  people  would  answer  no  good  purpose — perhaps  the 
Reverse —  You'l  be  kind  enough  to  excuse  this  long  Narrative  and 
believe  me  Dear  Sir 

Your  most  Ob't  Hum'l 
Ser't, 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

N.B.  I  believe  I  shall  be  able  to  prevail  on  Dayton's  Reg't  to 
Remain  until  the  first  of  March  unless  these  people  stir  them  to 
Mutiny — which  I  have  some  Reason  to  apprehend — lest  they  them- 
selves should  be  asked  to  stay  after  the  expiration  of  their  time ;  for 
which  I  hope  there  will  be  no  Occation. 

It  is  curious  to  observe  while  looking  over  these 
letters,  most  of  which  were  written  shortly  after  the 
Declaration  of  Independence,  that  that  instrument  is 
seldom  referred  to  in  them,  and  that  very  little  impor- 
tance is  attached  to  it  as  giving  a  new  significance  to 
the  war.  Unfortunately  for  Pennsylvania,  the  date  of 
the  Declaration  coincided  very  nearly  with  that  of  the 
attempt  to  introduce  a  new  government  into  that  State 
unacceptable  to  a  very  large  and  intelligent  portion  of 


CANADIAN  CAMPAIGN  AND    TICONDEROGA.      57 

the  population,  by  methods  which  were  regarded  by 
many  as  a  simple  usurpation  of  power.  The  patriots 
who  then  bore  sway  in  Pennsylvania  were  identified,  in 
the  minds  of  many  who  wished  well  to  the  cause,  with 
the  party  who,  after  a  most  violent  and  bitter  struggle, 
had  destroyed  the  old  charter  of  the  Province,  and  with 
it  the  power  of  those  who  had  formed  the  governing 
class  in  it,  and  had  substituted  for  it  a  new  Constitution, 
which  did  not  appear  to  any  one,  even  those  most  op- 
posed to  the  old  system,  to  work  satisfactorily.  There 
were,  for  instance,  loud  complaints  all  through  the  war 
that  Pennsylvania  did  not  supply  her  troops  in  the  field 
regularly  with  clothing  and  provisions,  and  that  she 
neglected  to  pay  them  often  for  months  after  their  pay 
became  due,  and  that  when  she  did  pay  them  it  was 
often  in  base  money  that  had  little  purchasing  power. 
Her  persistent  neglect  in  these  matters,  as  is  well 
known,  was  the  cause  of  a  serious  mutiny  among  the 
troops  of  the  Pennsylvania  line  in  the  beginning  of 
1 78 1,  and  of  constant  embarrassment  during  the  war. 
Of  course  the  blame  for  this  neglect  or  maladminis- 
tration was  thrown  by  their  opponents  upon  those  who 
then  wielded  the  power  of  the  State.  It  should  never 
be  forgotten  that  during  the  Revolutionary  War  the 
struggle  was  not  merely  between  the  rulers  of  Penn- 
sylvania and  the  open  enemy,  the  British  army,  but  also 
between  them  and  the  fierce  opposition  of  a  powerful 
party  in  their  own  State.  While  their  opponents  de- 
nounced the  ruling  powers  as  usurpers,  they  retorted 
by  confiscation  and  test  laws,  a  course  which  rendered 
the  war  highly  unpopular  to  many.  It  was  the  intention 
and  result  of  these  laws  to  disfranchise  nearly  one-half 


5 8  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

of  the  population  in  number,  and  more  than  one-half  if 
reckoned  by  their  wealth  and  intelligence.  In  short, 
Pennsylvania  fought  in  the  Revolution  like  a  man  with 
one  arm  tied  behind  his  back,  and  what  strength  was 
left  her  was  too  often  employed  in  struggles  between 
contending  parties  in  their  own  State  rather  than 
against  the  common  enemy.  The  Declaration  of  Inde- 
pendence was,  unhappily,  looked  upon  by  many  at  the 
time  as  a  party  triumph,  and  it  was  followed  up  here  as 
nowhere  else  by  measures  that  drove  from  the  public 
service  many  men  of  the  highest  character  who  had  up 
to  that  time  been  regarded  as  the  foremost  patriots  of 
the  State.  It  is  hard  to  estimate  how  far  it  paralyzed 
her  efforts  during  the  war. 

A  good  deal  of  the  clamor  of  those  days  which  has 
survived  in  history,  therefore,  is  due  to  this  bitter  party 
spirit  which  had  been  aroused  between  those  who 
favored  and  those  who  opposed  the  Constitution  of 
1776.  The  opponents  of  the  government  organized 
by  it  were  fewer  in  number  than  those  who  warmly 
supported  it.  They  belonged  to  various  classes  of  the 
population, — to  the  Conservative  Whigs,  to  the  Loyal- 
ists and  Tories,  to  the  Quakers,  and  even  to  many  of 
the  original  advocates  of  a  revision  of  the  charter,  who 
were  not  satisfied  with  the  Constitution  which  had  been 
adopted.  Many  of  those  who  openly  expressed  their 
dislike  of  the  new  form  of  government  for  the  State 
were  men  of  high  social  position  who  had  belonged  to 
the  governing  class  under  the  old  rigime,  and  they  did 
not  hesitate  to  sneer  at  the  work  of  the  radical  mob,  as 
they  called  them,  and  to  magnify  their  errors  and  their 
maladministration.     The  truth  is  that,  as  society  here 


CANADIAN  CAMPAIGN  AND    TICONDEROGA.     59 

was  constituted  at  the  beginning  of  the  Revolution,  it 
was  hardly  to  be  expected  that  the  men  who  had  always 
been  leaders  in  the  political  affairs  of  the  Province 
would  give  up  their  control  without  a  fierce  struggle. 
Pennsylvania  was,  therefore,  greatly  weakened  in  the 
Revolution  by  these  internal  dissensions.  The  cor- 
respondence of  Wayne  is  very  instructive  in  showing 
how,  very  early  in  the  war,  this  evil  spirit  became  a 
conspicuous  element  in  the  progress  of  the  Revolution. 
The  letters  just  given  are  remarkable,  because  they 
show  that  civilians  like  Dr.  Rush  and  Mr.  Peters,  and 
military  officers  of  high  rank  like  St.  Clair,  Thompson, 
Wayne,  Johnston,  and  Hartley,  were  out  of  sympathy 
in  many  respects  with  the  men  who  formed  the  govern- 
ment they  served.  It  is  prudent,  therefore,  in  reading 
of  the  destitution  of  the  Pennsylvania  line  during  the 
war,  to  remember  these  things. 


CHAPTER  III. 

BRANDYWINE,  GERMANTOWN,  AND  VALLEY  FORGE. 

While  Wayne  was  in  command  of  the  garrison  at 
Ticonderoga  he  was  appointed,  as  has  been  stated,  on 
the  2 1 st  of  February,  1777,  a  brigadier-general  in  the 
army.  He  had  evidently  become  tired  of  the  life  of 
comparative  inaction  which  he  led  at  that  post,  and  was 
very  desirous  of  being  employed  in  active  service  and 
under  the  immediate  command  of  Washington.  On 
the  1 2th  of  April,  1777,  he  was  directed  by  the  gen- 
eral-in-chief  to  join  him  at  Morristown,  and  he  was  at 
once  placed  in  command  of  a  brigade  of  troops  sta- 
tioned there,  known  as  the  "  Pennsylvania  line."  In 
order  to  gain  a  correct  notion  of  the  character  of  the 
officers  and  men  thus  placed  in  his  charge,  many  of 
whom  followed  his  fortunes  during  the  remainder  of 
the  war,  a  few  words  of  explanation  may  be  necessary 
concerning  the  organization  of  the  Pennsylvania  troops 
in  the  Army  of  the  Revolution. 

The  fifty-three  battalions  of  Associators    or   militia 

organized  at  the  outbreak  of  the  war  had  by  this  time 

been  disbanded,  their  term  of  service  having  expired. 

Their  whole  number  was  four  thousand  three  hundred, 

and  they  filled  the  first  quota  of  troops  called  for  by 

Congress  from   Pennsylvania.      These  were  replaced 

by  six  Pennsylvania  State  battalions,  a  rifle  regiment, 

and  a  musketry  battalion,  whose  term  of  service  expired 
60 


BRANDYWINE,  GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  61 

in  January,  1777,  they  having  been  enlisted  for  one 
year. 

A  reorganization  of  the  troops  was  then  made.  Thir- 
teen regiments  of  infantry,  besides  some  small  bodies 
of  cavalry  and  artillery,  were  enlisted  in  Pennsylvania 
directly  for  the  Continental  service,  many  of  the  men, 
both  officers  and  soldiers,  having  been  members  of 
the  old  State  battalions  and  re-enlisting  in  the  new 
for  "  three  years  or  the  war."  They  were  all  at  this 
time  in  General  Washington's  army,  forming  the  Penn- 
sylvania line.  These  regiments  should  have  formed  a 
division  and  been  commanded  by  a  major-general. 
There  were  then  but  two  officers  of  that  rank  appointed 
from  Pennsylvania, — Generals  Mifflin  and  St.  Clair, — 
and  neither  of  them  seems  to  have  been  considered  eli- 
gible to  the  command,  St.  Clair  having  succeeded  Wayne 
in  the  command  of  Ticonderoga  and  Mifflin  being  quar- 
termaster-general at  the  time.  Wayne  was  a  brigadier- 
general  when  he  joined  Washington's  army,  and  so  he 
remained,  it  may  be  said,  during  the  whole  war.  During 
all  this  time,  from  the  beginning  to  the  end,  he  had  always 
an  independent  command,  burdened  with  all  the  labors, 
anxieties,  and  responsibilities  of  the  position,  without  the 
rank,  consideration,  or  pay,  of  a  major-general.  Noth- 
ing seems  to  illustrate  more  fully  his  true  magnanimity 
and  his  untiring  and  patriotic  devotion  than  the  cheer- 
fulness with  which  he  performed  the  duties  without 
holding  the  rank  of  a  major-general.  Surrounded  at  all 
times  by  subordinates  who  were  adding  to  his  troubles 
by  constant  complaints  that  by  the  "arrangement"  of 
the  civil  authorities  their  due  rank  and  promotion  had 
been  withheld  from  them,  there  was  not  a  murmur  heard 


62  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

from  Wayne  on  this  score  during  the  war,  although  he 
doubtless  felt  that  he  had  been  more  deeply  aggrieved 
in  the  matter  of  rank  than  any  of  his  complaining  offi- 
cers. I  can  find  no  allusion  to  this  matter  in  the  way 
of  complaint  in  any  of  his  letters,  except  an  indignant 
refusal  of  a  request  made  by  one  of  his  friends,  early 
in  his  career,  that  he  should  ask  General  Gates  to 
recommend  him  to  Congress  as  a  suitable  person  to 
fill  the  post  of  brigadier-general. 

The  command  to  which  General  Wayne  was  as- 
signed in  the  spring  of  1777  was,  as  has  been  said,  com- 
posed of  eight  regiments,  forming  a  division  of  two 
brigades.  The  First  Brigade  consisted  of  the  First 
Regiment,  Colonel  Chambers ;  the  Second,  Colonel 
Walter  Stewart ;  the  Seventh,  Lieutenant-Colonel  Con- 
nor; and  the  Tenth,  Lieutenant-Colonel  Hubley.  The 
Second  Brigade  was  composed  of  the  Fourth  Regiment, 
Lieutenant-Colonel  William  Butler ;  the  Fifth,  Lieuten- 
ant-Colonel Johnston  ;  the  Eighth,  Colonel  Broadhead ; 
and  the  Eleventh,  Colonel  Humpton.  There  were  about 
seventeen  hundred  men  in  the  division  when  General 
Wayne  assumed  the  command.  The  other  division 
of  the  Pennsylvania  line  in  Washington's  army,  under 
Lord  Stirling's  command,  was  made  up  of  Conway's — 
formerly  Mifflin's — brigade  of  four  regiments,  and  of 
Colonel  Hausegger's  German  regiment. 

At  the  time  that  General  Wayne  joined  the  army 
Washington  had  under  his  command  forty-three  regi- 
ments, all  from  the  States  south  of  the  Hudson.  They 
were  organized  in  five  divisions  of  two  brigades  each, 
and  numbered  about  seven  thousand  three  hundred 
men.     They  were  nearly  all  fresh  recruits.     The  army 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  63 

was  then  passing  through  one  of  those  dangerous  crises 
which  threatened  its  existence  at  the  close  of  each  year 
of  the  war,  arising  from  its  complete  renewal  by  re- 
cruits who  were  to  take  the  place  of  those  whose  term 
of  service  had  then  expired.  As  the  soldiers  of  the 
army  in  most  of  the  States  had  been  enlisted  for  a 
single  year  only,  there  wTas  at  the  end  of  that  year  sub- 
stantially a  new  army  and  a  new  organization,  or,  as  it 
was  called,  a  new  "arrangement."  During  the  period 
of  the  incubation  of  this  new  army  it  was  necessarily 
weak,  and,  as  it  was  naturally  to  be  presumed  that  the 
enemy  must  understand  its  condition,  Washington  was 
kept  in  a  state  of  perpetual  alarm  lest  an  attack  should 
be  made  upon  him  by  the  long-trained  and  well-disci- 
plined troops  of  the  enemy,  whose  numbers  exceeded 
his  own  threefold.  He  now  reaped  the  full  advantage 
of  the  masterly  stroke  by  which  he  had  broken  the 
enemy's  army  at  Trenton  and  Princeton  and  forced  it 
to  retreat.  This  particular  result  was  perhaps  the  least 
of  all  the  advantages  he  gained  by  his  strategy.  Having 
occupied  the  high  ground  in  the  neighborhood  of  Morris- 
town,  he  had  there  an  excellent  defensive  position,  which 
he  strengthened  by  intrenchments.  He  was  thus  on 
the  right  flank  of  the  enemy's  position,  and  until  he 
was  dislodged  no  movement  of  Sir  William  Howe's 
army  could  be  made  towards  Philadelphia  without  great 
danger  of  being  cut  off  from  its  communications  and 
supplies.  Washington  therefore  thought  (wisely,  as  it 
turned  out)  that  the  Fabian  policy  was  the  true  one 
under  the  circumstances.  Thus,  while  refusing  to  meet 
the  enemy  in  the  open  field  he  safely  intrenched  him- 
self on  the  heights  at  Middlebrook,  and  manoeuvred  his 


64  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

troops  so  as  to  threaten  the  flanks  and  rear  of  Sir  Wil- 
liam Howe's  army  should  he  move  towards  Philadelphia, 
or  should  he  take  the  opposite  direction  and  endeavor 
to  form  a  junction  with  Burgoyne  in  the  hill-country  of 
the  Hudson  River.  To  carry  out  this  policy  success- 
fully so  as  to  cover  the  country  between  West  Point 
and  the  Delaware  a  general  of  extraordinary  activity 
and  intelligence  was  needed,  in  command  of  troops  of 
such  spirit  and  discipline  as  to  be  able  to  move  at  a 
moment's  warning.  This  general  was  found  in  Wayne, 
and  the  troops  chosen  for  the  advanced  guard  on 
this  special  service  were  the  Pennsylvania  line  under 
his  command.  The  British  army  was  moved  forward  to 
Brunswick,  and  took  up  its  quarters  between  that  place 
and  Somerset  Court-House.  Their  object  was  to  cut 
off  Sullivan,  who  was  stationed  at  Princeton,  but  his  re- 
treat baffled  them.  General  Washington  immediately 
embraced  the  opportunity  of  attacking  this  detachment 
of  the  enemy's  forces.  On  the  2d  of  May  an  assault 
was  made  upon  them  at  Brunswick.  They  hurriedly 
left  their  intrenchments  there  and  retreated  to  Amboy. 
What  part  General  Wayne  and  his  troops  had  in  hast- 
ening "  the  order  of  their  going"  is  told  in  the  follow- 
ing letter. 

General  Wayne  to  the  Board  of  War. 

Camp  at  Mount  Prospect  3  June  1777 
Gentlemen, — In  Consequence  of  the  Orders  of  His  Excellency 
Gen'l  Washington  I  now  send  Major  Miller  for  Arms  &  Clothing 
for  the  first  Penn'a  Regiment  Commanded  by  Col.  Chambers — they 
never  Rec'd  any  Uniform  except  hunting  Shirts  which  are  worn  out 
— and  Altho  a  body  of  fine  men — yet  from  being  in  Rags  and  badly 
armed — they  are  viewed  with  Contempt  by  the  Other  Troops,  and 
begin  to  Despise  themselves — 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,   ETC.  65 

Discontent  ever  produces  Desertion,  to  prevent  which  I  must  in 
the  most  pressing  manner  Request  you  to  Assist  him  and  the  Other 
Gentlemen  who  go  on  the  same  Errand  in  procuring  Clothes  and 
Arms. 

The  Conduct  of  the  Pennsylvanians  the  Other  day  in  forceing 
Gen'l  Grant  to  Retire  with  Circumstances  of  Shame  and  Disgrace 
into  the  very  lines  of  the  Enemy  has  gained  them  the  Esteem  and 
Confidence  of  His  Excellency — who  wishes  to  have  Our  Rifles  ex- 
changed for  good  Muskets  &  Bayonets — experience  has  taught  us 
that  they  are  not  fit  for  the  field — a  few  only  will  be  Retained  in 
each  Regiment  and  those  placed  in  the  hands  of  Real  Marksmen. — 
I  have  taken  this  Liberty  as  I  am  Confident  that  you  have  the  Honor 
of  your  State  at  Heart — and  that  you  will  use  every  means  in  your 
Power  to  expedite  the  Arming  &  Clothing  of  our  People  as  Soldiers 
in  Order  to  support  it — 

I  am  Gentlemen  with  the  Greatest  Respect 
Your  Most  Ob't  and  very 
Humb'l  Ser't 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

General  Wayne  to  Sharp  Delany. 

Camp  at  Mount  Prospect  7th  June  1777 
My  Dear  Delany, — I  have  just  time  to  Inform  you  that  I 
am  well — I  intended  to  say  a  great  deal — but  His  Excellency  has 
this  Moment  sent  for  me — he  has  posted  me  in  Front  &  honored 
me  with  the  Charge  of  the  most  material  pass  leading  to  the 
Camp. 

The  Enemy  are  all  at  work  in  fortifying  their  Camp — we  have 
fairly  turned  the  tables  on  them — for  whilst  we  are  Usefully  Em- 
ployed in  Manoeuvring — they  are  at  hard  Labor —  Our  people  are 
daily  gaining  Health  Spirits  and  Discipline — the  spade  &  pick  axe 
throw'd  aside — for  the  British  Rebels  to  take  up — they  notwith- 
standing affect  to  hold  us  cheap  and  threaten  to  beat  up  our  Quar- 
ters— if  we  don't  beat  up  theirs  first  which  is  in  Contemplation,  but 
this  in  time. 

I  am  again  sent  for,  farewell  and  believe  me  yours 

Most  Sincerely 

Ant'y  Wayne. 
6 


66  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE, 

Graydon  in  his  Memoirs  says  that  he  received  sub- 
stantially the  same  impression  after  a  visit  to  General 
Wayne's  head-quarters  at  this  time : 

"The  Commander-in-Chief  and  all  about  him  were 
in  excellent  spirits,  and  as  to  General  Wayne,  whom  I 
waited  upon  at  his  quarters,  he  entertained  a  most  sov- 
ereign contempt  for  the  enemy.  In  his  confident  way 
he  affirmed  that  the  two  armies  had  interchanged  their 
original  modes  of  warfare ;  that  for  our  parts  we  had 
thrown  away  the  shovel,  and  the  British  had  taken  it 
up,  as  they  dared  not  face  us  without  the  cover  of  an 
entrenchment.  I  made  some  allowance  for  the  fervid 
manner  of  the  general,  who  is  unquestionably  as  brave 
a  man  as  any  in  the  army,  but  is  somewhat  addicted  to 
the  vaunting  style  of  Marshal  Villars,  a  man  who  like 
himself  could  fight  as  well  as  brag." 

"  General  Wayne's  quondam  uniform  as  colonel  of 
the  Fourth  Battalion  was,  I  think,  blue  and  white,  in 
which  he  had  been  accustomed  to  appear  in  exemplary 
neatness  ;  whereas  he  was  now  dressed  in  character  for 
Mr.  Heath  or  Captain  Gibbet,  in  a  dingy  red  coat,  a 
black  rusty  cravat,  and  tarnished  laced  hat." — Graydoris 
Memoirs,  p.  277. 

The  same  day  Wayne  writes  thus  to  his  wife,  in  a 
more  serious  tone : 

General  Wayne  to  Mrs.  Mary  Wayne, 

Camp  at  Mount  Prospect  7th  June  1777 
My  dear  Polly, — I  this  moment  Rec'd  yours  of  the  31st  May — 
and  am  extremely  sorry  to  hear  of  your  bad  state  of  health — you 
must  Endeavor  to  keep  up  your  Spirits  as  well  as  possible — the  times 
Require  great  Sacrifices  to  be  made — the  Blessings  of  Liberty  can- 
not be  purchased  at  too  high  a  price — the  Blood  and  treasure  of  the 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  67 

Choicest  and  best  Spirits  of  this  Land  is  but  a  trifling  Consideration 
for  the  Rich  Inheritance —  Whether  any  of  the  present  leaders 
will  live  to  see  it  Established  in  this  Once  happy  Soil  Depends  on 
Heaven ; — but  it  must,  it  will  at  one  day  rise  in  America,  &  shine 
forth  in  its  pristine  Lustre.  I  would  advise  you  to  use  every  possible 
Endeavour  to  get  in  your  Harvest  yourself  and  not  put  it  Out  on 
Shares  on  no  Acc't  as  grain  and  Hay  will  be  at  a  Prodigious  price 
next  winter.  Have  we  no  kind  Neighbours  to  lend  a  helping 
hand  ? — I  am  sure  the  Bartholomews  &  Davis's  families  will  have 
goodness  Enough  to  give  you  their  Assistance  and  Advice, — present 
my  best  Respects  to  them  and  all  our  friends  &  tell  them  they  live 
in  my  grateful  Memory — and  that  I  hope  at  one  day  to  Enjoy  peace  y 
Established  on  the  firm  Basis  of  Liberty  in  their  Social  Company 

The  Education  of  my  Little  Children  is  a  matter  that  gives  me 
much  Concern — and  which  I  [hope]  you  will  not  neglect — I  have 
already  hinted  [that]  I  expect  my  little  son  will  not  turn  aside  from 
virtue,  though  the  path  should  be  marked  with  his  father's  Blood — 

Farewell,  God  Bless  you, 

Yours  Most  Sincerely 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

I  can't  be  spared  from  Camp.  I  have  the  Confidence  of  the 
General,  and  the  Hearts  of  the  Soldiers  who  will  Support  me  in 
the  Day  of  Action. 

While  General  Wayne  was  cheered  by  the  success 
of  Washington's  tactics  in  baffling  the  plans  of  Sir 
William  Howe,  and  grew  every  day  more  hopeful  as 
the  proofs  of  the  discipline  of  the  army  multiplied,  he 
received  letters  from  his  two  friends  Dr.  Rush  and  Mr. 
Peters,  which,  if  his  temperament  had  not  been  of  the 
most  buoyant  kind  and  his  faith  in  the  triumph  of  the 
cause  had  not  been  absolute,  would  doubtless  have 
utterly  crushed  his  spirit.  Nothing  could  well  be  more 
depressing  than  the  account  they  both  gave  of  the 
political  condition  of  Pennsylvania,  then  suffering  from 


68  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE, 

evils  which,  in  their  opinion,  seemed  almost  remediless. 
The  letters  are  given  a  place  here  for  this  among  other 
reasons,  that  we  may  be  reminded  how  many  causes  of 
deep  anxiety  tortured  the  minds  of  the  best  men  during 
the  Revolution,  of  which  we  hear  but  little  in  history 
as  it  is  commonly  written,  and  how  the  privations  and 
dangers  of  the  field  were  not  the  only  trials  which  were 
borne  in  giving  birth  to  the  government  whose  protec- 
tion we  now  enjoy.  We  must  draw  special  attention 
to  the  manner  in  which  General  Wayne  received  these 
gloomy  accounts  of  the  condition  of  his  native  State 
and  the  sad  forebodings  of  his  correspondents  about 
its  future.  Nothing  is  finer  or  more  characteristic  of 
him  as  a  man  of  true  courage  and  a  devoted  patriot 
than  the  way  in  which  he  urges  his  correspondents  to 
give  up  for  the  moment  their  domestic  quarrels  and 
combine  all  the  forces  of  the  State  against  the  common 
enemy. 

Dr.  Rush  to  General  Wayne. 

My  dear  General, — General  Sinclair  who  will  deliver  you  this 
letter  will  inform  you  of  the  sickly  State  of  the  politicks  of  Pennsyl- 
vania. Cannon — Matlack — and  Dr  Young  still  hold  back  the  Strength 
of  the  State  by  urging  the  execution  of  their  rascally  Government  in 
preference  to  supporting  measures  for  repelling  the  common  enemy. 
A  majority  of  the  Presbyterians  are  in  favor  of  the  constitution,  and 
in  no  part  of  the  State  do  they  discover  more  Zeal  for  it  than  in 
Chester  County.  Gen'l  Sinclair — &  Gen'l  Thompson  ha[ve  given 
p]ublic  testimony  against  it,  I  [wish  you]  to  add  your  Weight  to  the 
Scale  of  opposition,  especially  in  your  native  County.  The  most 
respectable  Whig  characters  in  the  State  are  with  us.  I  need  not 
point  out  to  you  the  danger  and  folly  of  the  Constitution.  It  has 
substituted  a  Mob  Government  for  one  of  the  happiest  governments 
in  the  world.  Nothing  more  was  necessary  to  have  made  us  a  free 
&  happy  people  than  to  abolish  the  royal  &  proprietary  power  of  the 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  69 

State.  A  single  legislature  is  big  with  tyranny.  I  had  rather  live 
under  the  government  of  one  man  than  of  72.  They  will  soon  be- 
come like  the  30  [tyrants  of]  Athens.  Absolute  authority  should 
belong  only  to  God.  It  requires  infinite  Wisdom  and  goodness  to 
direct  it. 

Come,  my  dear  Sir  and  let  us  weep  together  over  the  dear  nurse  of 
our  childhood, — the  protectress  of  our  youth,  and  the  generous  re- 
warder  of  our  riper  years.  "  De  re  publica  nunquam  Desperandum." 
Let  us  unite  our  efforts  once  more  and  perhaps  we  may  recover  Penn- 
sylvania from  her  delirium —  At  present,  she  has  lifted  a  knife  to 
her  own  throat.  Your  timely  prescriptions  may  yet  save  her  life. 
Adieu — my  dear  friend 

yours 

sincerely 

B.  Rush. 

Philad'a  May  19th  1777. 

Dr.  Rush  to  General  Wayne. 

Philad.  June  5th  1777 

My  dear  General, — I  formerly  thought  as  you  do  upon  the  sub- 
ject of  our  government,  but  I  have  seen  so  many  men  sacrifice  their 
prejudices  against  it  to  an  honourable  or  lucrative  office,  that  I  am 
sure  nothing  but  the  determined  opposition  of  the  old  Whigs  to  the 
government  prevented  its  execution.  They  now  begin  to  feel as  well 
as  see  its  weakness,  and  nothing  but  obstinacy  in  a  few  men  keeps 
its  power  from  falling  to  pieces.  Had  it  been  Once  established  I  am 
sure  nothing  but  a  civil  war  would  have  overthrown  it.  So  strong 
are  its  ties  upon  the  passions  and  interests  of  a  part  of  the  State  that 
innocence  and  justice  must  have  sighed  &  submitted —  Alas  !  that 
our  minds  should  be  turned  from  opposing  a  foreign  to  opposing 
a  domestic  tyranny —  But  all  will  end  well,  and  I  trust  you  will 
find  both  fruit  &  shade  beneath  the  vine  and  the  fig  tree  of  your 
farm  when  you  return  to  rest  your  limbs  after  the  toils  of  the  war 
are  over. — 

The  public  have  done  you  justice  for  your  gallant  behaviour  in 
checking  the  prowess  of  Mr.  Grant.  When  shall  we  have  the  pleas- 
ure of  seeing  you  ?  Suppose  you  write  to  some  of  your  Old  friends 
in  Chester  County  to  concur  with  us  in  Altering  the  Constitution. 


70  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

Nothing  but  a  new  convention  will  restore  Union  to  us,  and  draw 
forth  the  Whig  strength  of  the  State  to  oppose  the  common  enemy. 

I  expect  to  spend  part  of  this  summer  with  you  at  Camp.  Is  your 
habit  of  body  such  as  it  used  to  be  ?  If  it  is  I  think  a  wound  can 
prove  mortal  to  you  in  very  few  places —  At  any  rate  you  shall  have 
a  chance  for  your  life  if  I  am  near  you,  and  am  allowed  to  combat 
death  with  my  old  weapons  of  lancet — scalpel — glysterpipe  &c — 

God  keep  you  from  falling  into  my  hands  in  that  way  !  and  grant 
you  many  laurels  and  long  life — 

Comp'ts  to  Col.  Johnston 

Yours 

B.  Rush. 
Mr.  R.  Peters  to  General  Wayne. 

Philad'a  May  27th  1777 

My  dear  Sir, — I  am  extremely  sorry  that  from  Col  Trumbul's 
short  stay  among  us  I  have  not  had  it  in  my  Power  to  Shew  him  the 
Civilities  which  I  would  wish  any  Gentleman  of  your  recommenda- 
tion to  experience  from  me.  Your  Situation  is  indeed  cruel ;  but 
you  will  bear  it  with  that  Fortitude  which  you  have  often  been 
obliged  to  exercise —  I  hope  however  some  of  our  General  Officers 
will  relieve  you  &  then  I  shall  have  the  Happiness  of  taking  you  by 
the  Hand —  Your  Family  Affairs  want  you,  out  fallen  Pennsylvania 
wants  you  too —  But  you  are  no  Doubt  prepared  to  see  her  in  quite 
a  different  Aspect  from  that  in  which  you  left  her.  I  expect  how- 
ever better  Days  which  God  send  not  only  for  my  own,  but  the  Sake 
of  our  Country.  Some  Change  must  be  made,  or  the  Power  of  this 
important  State  will  never  be  exerted,  for  the  Salvation  of  American 
Liberty —  Sally  joins  me  in  very  affectionate  Regards  &  believe 
me  to  be 

Most  sincerely  Yours, 

R.  Peters. 

General  Wayne  to  Dr.  Rush. 

Camp  at  Mount  Prospect  2  [torn  out] 

My  dear  Rush, — I  would   long  since  have   acknowledged  the 

Rec't  of  yours  of  the  April  had  I  not  the  most  flattering  hope 

of  doing  it  Viva  Voce —     Gen'l  St  Clair  Delivered  me  that  dated 

the  19th  Ultimo  [May]  in  which  you  give  me  a  Melancholy  and  I 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  71 

fear  too  just  a  picture  of  the  Distraction  of  our  State,  and  the  folly 
Obstinacy  &  Incapacity  of  those  who  Influence  her  Councils — 
Gen'l  St.  Clair  &  many  Other  Gentlemen  of  the  Army  can  witness 
for  me  that  at  the  first  view  of  your  Sickly  Constitution — I  pro- 
nounced it  not  worth  Defending — nor  do  I  think  it  would  have  an 
existence  at  this  date  were  it  not  for  the  early  Opposition  given  it — 
in  my  Opinion  the  Only  way  to  open  the  eyes  of  the  people  would 
have  been  to  try  to  put  it  in  execution — the  Defects  would  not  only 
be  seen  but  felt  which  have  produced  a  stronger  Conviction  than  all 
the  Reasoning  or  Logick  that  has  been  used  on  the  Occation 

I  must  for  the  present  Request  you  and  every  friend  to  his  Country 
to  exert  yourselves  in  Calling  forth  the  Strength  of  Penns'a  and 
Completing  our  Battalions,  which  are  yet  very  weak — let  us  once  be 
in  a  Condition  to  Vanquish  these  British  Rebels  and  I  answer  for  it 
that  then  your  present  Rulers  will  give  way  for  better  men  which 
will  produce  better  Measures. 

In  my  next  I  hope  to  give  you  some  pleasing  Intelligence — we 
shan't  remain  many  days  in  this  Inactive  state — the  Enemy  don't 
seem  fond  of  meeting  Disciplined  Troops —  We  Offered  Gen'l 
Grant  Battle  six  times  the  Other  day  he  as  often  formed  but  always 
on  our  Approach  his  people  broke  and  Ran  after  firing  a  few  Volleys 
which  we  never  Returned,  being  Determined  to  let  them  feel  the 
force  of  our  fire  and  to  give  them  the  Bayonet  under  Cover  of  the 
Smoke —  This  Howe  who  was  to  March  through  America  at  the 
head  of  5000  men  had  his  Coat  much  Dirtied,  his  Horses  head  taken 
off,  and  himself  badly  Bruis'd  for  having  the  presumption  at  the 
head  of  700  British  Troops  to  face  500  Penns'as 

Present  my  Compliments  to  our  friends  and  believe  me 

Yours  Most  Sincerely 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

During  the  month  of  June  Washington's  army  was 
encamped  at  Middlebrook,  near  the  Raritan,  strongly 
intrenched.  Various  devices  were  resorted  to  by  Sir 
William  Howe  to  induce  the  Americans  to  evacuate 
their  strong  position  and  to  meet  him  on  the  plains. 
Washington  knew  too  well  the  great  advantage  he  held 


72  MAJOR  GENERAL    WAYNE. 

to  be  tempted  into  making  any  such  false  step.  Not 
only  was  he  safe  in  his  intrenchments,  but  he  could 
move  with  equal  facility  to  prevent  Howe's  advance 
towards  Philadelphia  or  any  movement  of  his  intended 
to  form  a  junction  with  Burgoyne  on  the  Hudson,  as 
occasion  might  require.  Various  skirmishes  took  place 
between  the  advanced  posts  of  the  army,  in  one  of 
which  General  Wayne  tells  us  he  commanded,  without 
any  serious  result.  At  length  Sir  William  Howe,  de- 
spairing of  forcing  Washington  to  meet  him  in  a  pitched 
battle,  decided  to  approach  Philadelphia  by  sea,  and  for 
that  purpose  embarked  his  troops  at  Staten  Island  im- 
mediately upon  the  evacuation  of  New  Jersey. 

There  was  still  great  uncertainty  in  the  American 
camp  in  regard  to  the  route,  or  even  the  destination, 
of  Howe's  army.  Whether  it  was  proposed  to  reach 
Burgoyne's  forces  by  sea,  or  whether,  leaving  him  to 
take  care  of  himself,  Howe  would  undertake  alone  the 
capture  of  Philadelphia,  could  not  be  ascertained. 

While  the  American  army  was  thus  without  positive 
intelligence  of  Howe's  movements  after  the  evacuation 
of  New  Jersey,  it  was  astounded  to  learn  that  Ticon- 
deroga  had  been  evacuated  by  St.  Clair  on  the  5th 
of  July,  1777.  "An  event  so  mysterious  as  to  baffle 
conjecture,"  is  the  language  of  Washington.  In  all  his 
arrangements  Washington  had  supposed  that  fortress 
defensible,  or  at  least  capable  of  standing  a  long  siege, 
and  its  abandonment  therefore  without  any  siege  what- 
ever deranged  all  his  plans.  It  is  true  that  General 
Wayne  and  Colonel  Trumbull  had  called  attention  some 
months  before  to  what  seemed  to  them  a  weak  spot 
in  the  defences,  owing  to  the  possibility  of  mounting 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  73 

cannon  on  a  commanding  height  from  which  it  could  be 
reached ;  but  no  heed  seems  to  have  been  given  to  their 
warning,  and  this  height  was  left  to  be  occupied  by  the 
enemy.  A  battery  having  been  established  on  Mount 
Defiance,  the  Americans  at  once  acted  the  part  of  those 
who  think  discretion  the  better  part  of  valor,  and  aban- 
doned the  fort.  If  those  who  knew  little  of  the  prepara- 
tions which  had  been  made  there  to  receive  the  enemy 
were  surprised  at  the  result,  what  must  Wayne  and  his 
companions,  who  had  during  the  past  winter  expended 
so  much  time,  labor,  and  even  many  human  lives  in 
rendering  Ticonderoga,  as  they  thought  when  they 
left  it,  impregnable,  have  felt  when  they  heard  of  its 
abandonment?  But  these  are  matters  which  concern 
the  character  of  that  most  unfortunate  of  generals,  St. 
Clair,  with  whose  vindication  it  is  not  our  business  to 
meddle  here. 

It  was  at  first  thought,  when  the  news  of  giving  up 
the  gates  of  the  country  from  the  Canada  side  reached 
the  army,  that  an  effort  would  be  at  once  made  to  form 
a  junction  of  the  forces  of  Howe  and  Burgoyne  on  the 
banks  of  the  Hudson  ;  but  it  was  decided  by  the  enemy 
that  Howe  should  push  on  to  Philadelphia,  and  that  Bur- 
goyne should  be  left  to  his  own  resources  and  to  his  fate. 

The  British  fleet  with  Howe's  army  on  board  went 
out  of  Sandy  Hook  on  the  25th  of  July,  and  at  once 
Washington  issued  the  following  order  to  General 
Wayne : 

"The  fleet  having  gone  out  of  the  Hook,  and  as 
Delaware  appears  to  be  its  most  probable  destination, 
I  desire  that  you  will  leave  your  brigade  under  the  next 
in  command,  and  proceed  to  Chester  County,  in  Penn- 


74  MAJOR GENERAL    WAYNE. 

sylvania,  where  your  presence  will  be  necessary  to  ar- 
range the  militia  who  are  to  rendezvous  there." 

Wayne  proceeded  at  once  to  perform  that  duty,  and, 
having  organized  the  Pennsylvania  militia  and  placed 
it  under  the  command  of  General  John  Armstrong  (an 
old  man,  but  had  in  honor  as  "the  Hero  of  Kittanning" 
in  the  Indian  wars),  he  rejoined  his  division,  which 
by  that  time  had  reached  Germantown.  The  army 
marched  through  Philadelphia  on  the  23d  of  August 
and  took  post  near  Wilmington,  it  having  at  last  been 
fully  ascertained  that,  as  the  British  fleet  was  over  two 
hundred  miles  within  the  capes  of  Chesapeake  Bay, 
Sir  William  Howe  intended  to  approach  Philadelphia 
by  that  route.  On  the  26th  of  August  he  wrote  the 
annexed  letter  to  his  wife  while  the  army  was  in  motion. 
It  seems  to  me  that  there  is  a  subdued  tone  of  sadness 
about  this  letter  which  would  indicate  a  feeling  that  the 
interview  he  asked  for  might  be  the  last  which  the 
fortunes  of  war  would  permit  him  to  enjoy. 

General  Wayne  to  Mrs.  Wayne. 

Blue  Bell,  26th  Aug't  1777 
My  Dear  Girl, — I  am  peremptorily  forbid  by  His  Excellency 
to  leave  the  Army — my  case  is  hard —     I  am  Obliged  to  do  the 
duty  of  three  General  Officers — but  if  it  was  not  the  case — as  a  Gen'l 
Officer  I  could  not  Obtain  leave  of  Absence — 

I  must  therefore  in  the  most  pressing  Manner  Request  you  to  meet 
me  tomorrow  Evening  at  Naamans  Creek — pray  bring  Mr.  Robin- 
son with  my  Little  Son  &  Daughter  along — 

It  may  probably  happen  that  we  may  stay  in  that  Neighbourhood 
for  a  day  or  two — my  best  love  and  Compliments  to  all  friends 

I  am,  Dear  Polly, 

Yours 

Anth'y  Wayne. 
[Mrs.  Mary  Wayne,  Chester  County.] 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,   ETC.  75 

While  the  army  was  encamped  near  Wilmington  a 
very  thorough  reconnoissance  was  made  of  the  route  by 
which  the  enemy  was  advancing.  It  was  finally  decided 
to  take  post  on  the  eastern  side  of  the  Brandywine 
and  there  meet  him  in  open  battle.  In  the  mean  time, 
Wayne,  on  the  2d  of  September,  sent  a  letter  to  Gen- 
eral Washington  in  regard  to  a  proposed  expedition 
against  the  British  lines  which  seemed  to  him  full  of 
promise,  and  of  which  he  hoped  to  be  the  leader. 
The  proposal  does  not  seem  to  have  attracted  the  at- 
tention of  the  historians  of  the  campaign,  and  it  cer- 
tainly was  not  adopted  by  the  general-in-chief,  but  it 
none  the  less  shows  the  extraordinary  push  and  energy 
of  its  author,  as  well  as  his  brave  and  unconquerable 
spirit. 

General  Way?ie  to  General  Washington. 

Camp  near  Wilmington  2nd  Sept.  1777. 

Sir, — I  took  the  liberty  some  days  since  to  suggest  the  selecting 
2500  or  3000  of  our  best  Armed  and  most  Disciplined  Troops  (ex- 
clusive of  the  Reserves)  who  should  hold  themselves  in  Readiness 
on  the  Approach  of  the  Enemy  to  make  a  Regular  and  Vigorous 
Assault  on  their  Right  or  Left  flank — or  such  part  of  their  Army 
as  should  then  be  thought  most  expedient — and  not  wait  the  Attack 
from  them — 

This,  Sir,  I  am  well  Convinced  would  Surprise  them  much — from 
a  persuasion  that  you  dare  not  leave  your  Works — it  would  totally 
stop  the  Other  part  from  Advancing — and  should  the  Attack  be  for- 
tunate— which  I  have  not  the  least  doubt  of— the  Enemy  would  have 
no  Other  Alternative  than  to  Retreat — for  they  dare  not  hazard  any 
new  manoeuvre  in  the  face  of  your  Army  which  would  be  cool  & 
ready  to  take  every  Advantage  of  either  their  Confusion,  Disorder 
or  Retreat — &  from  which  the  best  and  greatest  Consequences  might 
be  Derived — 

This  Sir  is  no  new  Idea — it  has  been  often  practiced  with  success 
(among  many  Others)  by  Ccesar  at  A?niens  when  besieged  by  the 


76  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

Gauls,  who  Carried  part  of  the  entrenchments  and  were  rendering 
themselves  Masters  of  the  parapet — when  he  sallied  out  with  his 
Cohorts — threw  them  into  the  utmost  Consternation  &  Obtained  an 
easy  Victory — 

He  practiced  the  same  manoeuvre  at  Alesia  against  the  same  people. 
— Success  Justified  the  Measure — they  were  struck  with  a  terror  & 
surprise,  which  Marshal  Saxe  Justly  Observes  "proceeds  from  that 
Consternation  which  is  the  Unavoidable  effect  of  Sudden  and  unex- 
pected Events" 

This  is  a  General  rule  in  war ;  that  the  Irresistible  Impulse  of  the 
Human  Heart,  which  is  governed  by  mere  momentary  Caprice  and 
Opinion — Determines  the  fate  of  the  day  in  all  Actions ; — &  as  sim- 
ilar Causes  Generally  produce  Similar  Effects — I  could  wish  to  see  it 
practiced  (not  only  on  this  Occasion)  but  to  carry  it  still  further 
— and  make  the  Assault  on  the  Enemy  without  Risquing  too  much 

The  Spirit  and  Numbers  of  your  Regular  Troops  aided  by  the 
Crowds  of  Militia  now  Drawing  to  your  Camp,  Renders  success 
probable  &  will  at  all  events  be  sufficient  to  guard  against  any  bad 
Consequences  in  case  of  a  Military  Check  by  throwing  themselves 
into  the  works  and  Strong  Ground  in  your  Rear — 

I  own  Sir  that  I  dread  the  Re-embarquing  of  the  Enemy  much 
more  than  any  Consequence  attending  an  Attack  upon  thern  for 
should  they  take  shiping  again  and  proceed  to  some  Other  Quarter 
without  Attempting  anything  this  way — you  will  suffer  more  in  the 
march  after  them  than  you  would  probably  do  in  a  severe  Action — 
besides  the  Certain  loss  of  the  present  Militia — 

Should  I  be  happy  enough  to  meet  your  Excellency  in  Opinion — 
I  wish  to  be  of  the  number  Assigned  for  this  business.  On  the  Con- 
trary I  know  you  have  goodness  enough  to  excuse  a  freedom — which 
proceeds  from  a  Desire  to  render  every  service  in  the  power  of  your 
Excellency's  Most  Ob't 

and  very  Humb  Ser't 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

N.B.  Upon  Mature  Consideration  I  believe  it  will  not  answer  to 
Annex  the  Militia  to  our  Brigades — I  wish  it  may  not  take  place — 

[His  Excellency  Gen' l  Washington.] 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  77 

In  the  formation  of  the  army  at  the  battle  of  Brandy- 
wine  the  division  of  Wayne  and  the  artillery  of  Proc- 
ter (both  composed  of  Pennsylvania  troops),  with  the 
Third  Virginia  Regiment,  were  posted  on  the  left  of 
the  American  line  on  the  east  bank  of  the  Brandy- 
wine.  This  creek  was  fordable  in  front  of  the  posi- 
tion at  a  place  called  Chad's  Ford,  and  at  that  place 
Wayne's  division  was  stationed.  The  details  of  this 
battle,  especially  the  turning  of  the  right  flank  of  the 
Americans  by  the  detachment  under  Cornwallis,  are 
so  well  known  that  it  seems  unnecessary  to  repeat 
them  here.  Wayne  had  in  front  of  him,  separated  by 
a  narrow  creek,  the  forces  of  Knyphausen  (the  Hessian 
general),  consisting  of  about  seven  thousand  men,  and 
during  the  whole  day  stood  his  ground  firmly,  repelling 
successfully  every  attempt  by  Knyphausen  to  pass  the 
creek,  and  sending  Maxwell  with  his  light  infantry  oc- 
casionally to  the  other  side  with  orders  to  annoy  him. 
Wayne  remained  in  this  position  until  sunset,  and  until 
the  division  of  Sullivan  (reinforced  by  that  of  Greene), 
which  had  not  been  able  to  withstand  the  attack  of 
Cornwallis,  was  forced  back  from  Birmingham  Meeting- 
House.  The  right  flank  of  the  army  being  turned  by 
the  enemy  exposed  Wayne's  division  to  the  danger 
of  being  attacked  by  Knyphausen  in  his  front  and  by 
Cornwallis  in  his  rear.  He  therefore  retreated,  as  his 
supports  had  been  driven  from  the  field,  to  avoid  being 
surrounded.  His  men  were  in  good  order  and  disci- 
pline, and  quite  ready  to  attack  the  tired  battalions  of  the 
British  army  had  they  undertaken  to  interrupt  the  retreat 
of  the  army.  There  can  be  no  doubt  that  his  division 
on  this  retreat  saved  the  remnant  of  Sullivan's  force. 


78  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

The  conduct  of  Wayne  at  the  battle  of  Brandywine 
was,  in  the  judgment  of  the  military  critics  of  the  time, 
admirable.  General  Henry  Lee,  in  his  "  Memoirs  of  the 
Southern  Campaigns,"  gives  him  and  his  men  great 
credit  for  the  manner  in  which  they  resisted  the  attack 
of  Knyphausen.  He  says  many  of  the  corps  in  that 
battle  distinguished  themselves.  The  most  conspicuous 
were  the  brigades  of  Wayne  and  Weedon,  and  the 
Third  Virginia  Regiment,  commanded  by  Colonel  Mar- 
shall, to  whom,  with  the  artillery  directed  by  Colonel 
Procter,  of  Pennsylvania,  much  praise  was  given.  So 
General  Armstrong  (the  younger)  in  his  account  of  the 
battle  says,  "The  firing  on  the  left  being  the  signal  for 
Knyphausen  to  act,  that  officer  began  his  movements 
accordingly  ;  but,  notwithstanding  the  weight  and  vigor 
of  his  attack  and  the  aid  it  received  from  a  covering 
battery,  he  was  unable  to  drive  Wayne  from  his  posi- 
tion till  near  sunset."  Some  of  the  regiments  of  the 
Pennsylvania  line  were  highly  distinguished.  A  letter 
from  Colonel  Chambers  (First  Pennsylvania  Regiment) 
to  his  old  commander,  General  Hand,  gives  the  follow- 
ing picturesque  account  of  the  part  taken  by  his  regi- 
ment in  the  battle:  "The  general  sent  orders  for  our 
artillery  to  retreat,  and  ordered  me  to  cover  it  with 
a  part  of  my  regiment.  It  was  done,  but  to  my  sur- 
prise the  artillerymen  had  run  and  left  the  howitzer 
behind.  The  two  pieces  went  up  the  road  protected 
by  about  sixty  of  my  men,  who  had  very  warm 
work,  but  brought  them  safe.  I  then  ordered  another 
party  to  fly  to  the  howitzer  and  bring  it  off.  Cap- 
tain Buchanan,  Lieutenant  Simpson,  and  Lieutenant 
Douglass  went  immediately  to  the  gun,  and  the  men 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  79 

following  their  example,  I  covered  them  with  the  few  I 
had  remaining.  But  before  this  could  be  done  the  main 
body  of  the  foe  came  within  thirty  yards  and  kept  up 
the  most  terrible  fire  ever  heard  in  America,  though 
with  very  little  loss  on  our  side.  I  brought  all  the  bri- 
gade artillery  safely  off,  and  I  hope  to  see  them  again 
fired  at  the  scoundrels.  Yet  we  retreated  to  the  next 
height  in  good  order  in  the  midst  of  a  very  heavy  fire 
of  cannon  and  small-arms.  Not  thirty  yards  distant 
we  formed  to  receive  them,  but  they  did  not  choose  to 
follow." x  This  gallant  soldier  during  this  brilliant  action 
was  wounded  in  the  side  by  a  Hessian  bullet,  which  he 
carried  to  his  grave.  It  is  much  to  be  regretted  that 
no  full  record  of  the  services  of  each  of  the  eight  regi- 
ments in  the  Pennsylvania  line  has  been  preserved,  or, 
at  least,  is  accessible.  The  official  report  of  General 
Wayne  cannot  be  found.  We  know  that  the  Pennsyl- 
vania regiments  suffered  much  in  this  hard-fought  battle. 
We  know  that  many  of  the  field  officers  were  wounded  ; 
that  Colonel  Grier  of  the  Seventh,  Lieutenant-Colonel 
Bayard  of  the  Eighth,  Major  Robinson  of  the  Fifth,  and 
many  other  officers,  were  wounded  ;  that  among  the 
prisoners  taken  were  Lieutenant-Colonel  Frazer  and 
Adjutant  Harper  of  the  Fifth,  who  were  captured  two 
days  after  the  battle  while  reconnoitring,  and  that  Cap- 
tain Thomas  Butler  of  the  Fifth,  in  Sullivan's  division, 
received  the  thanks  of  General  Washington  for  his  gal- 
lantry in  rallying  broken,  retreating  troops.  This  Cap- 
tain Butler  was  one  of  four  brothers,  all  officers  of  the 

1  In  Sir  William  Howe's  official  despatch  he  refers  to  the  capture 
of  these  guns,  but  he  entirely  forgets  to  mention  that  they  were 
recaptured  by  Colonel  Chambers's  regiment. 


80  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

Pennsylvania  line,  and  all  devoted  friends  of  General 
Wayne, — Colonels  Richard  and  William  and  Majors 
Thomas  and  Edward,  a  band  of  heroes,  of  whose  ex- 
ploits we  shall  learn  more  in  the  course  of  this  history. 

One  of  the  Pennsylvania  regiments,  the  Thirteenth, 
commanded  by  Colonel  Walter  Stewart,  was  attached 
to  the  command  of  General  Sullivan,  and  not  to  that  of 
General  Wayne,  both  at  Brandywine  and  at  German- 
town.  The  loss  of  this  regiment  in  the  two  engage- 
ments was  but  sixteen ;  but  this  would  seem  to  be  no 
criterion  of  the  severity  of  the  struggle  in  which  the 
regiment  was  engaged.  "We  attacked  the  enemy," 
says  Lieutenant  James  MacMichael  of  that  regiment  at 
Brandywine,  "at  5.30  p.m.,  and  we  were  first  obliged  to 
retreat  a  few  yards,  and  formed  in  an  open  field,  when 
we  fought  without  giving  way  on  either  side  until  dark. 
Our  ammunition  almost  expended,  firing  ceased  on 
both  sides,  when  we  received  orders  to  proceed  to 
Chester.  This  day  for  a  severe  and  successive  engage- 
ment exceeded  all  I  ever  saw.  Our  regiment  fought  at 
one  stand  about  an  hour  under  an  incessant  fire,  and 
yet  the  loss  was  less  than  at  Long  Island,  neither  were 
we  so  near  to  each  other  as  at  Princeton,  our  common 
distance  being  fifty  yards."  l  In  the  absence  of  duly 
authenticated  reports  of  the  services  of  the  different 
regiments  in  the  battle,  this  is  all  we  can  tell  of  those 
Pennsylvanians  who  found  a  soldier's  grave  on  the 
banks  of  the  Brandywine. 

The  common   opinion    in   regard   to  the  American 

1  See  Diary  of  Lieutenant  James  MacMichael,  Pennsylvania 
Magazine,  vol.  xvi.  p.  150. 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  81 

army  after  the  battle  of  Brandywine  is  that  it  was 
totally  routed  and  disorganized.  Such  could  hardly 
have  been  the  case,  if  we  recall  its  condition  during 
the  two  succeeding  days.  On  the  night  of  the  1 1  th  it 
retreated  to  Chester,  a  distance  of  about  twelve  miles, 
and  reached  a  safe  encampment  about  ten  o'clock  in  the 
evening.  Starting  early  the  next  morning,  it  marched 
to  its  old  camp  near  the  Falls  of  Schuylkill,  a  distance  of 
at  least  sixteen  miles,  on  that  day.  These  facts  in  them- 
selves would  prove  that  the  army  had  not  lost  either 
its  organization  or  its  vigor,  even  if  we  had  not  Wash- 
ington's own  testimony  that  "  it  was  in  good  spirits  and 
nowise  disheartened  by  the  recent  affair,  which  it  seemed 
to  consider  as  a  check  rather  than  as  a  defeat."  Wash- 
ington, finding  the  army  in  this  temper,  recrossed  the 
Schuylkill  at  Conshohocken,  Wayne's  division  being  in 
the  advance,  to  engage  once  more  the  enemy  in  the 
hope  of  saving  Philadelphia.  The  British  army  had 
moved  leisurely  forward  towards  the  north  and  west 
from  the  battle-field,  hoping  to  cross  the  Schuylkill  at 
one  of  the  upper  fords  unmolested.  On  the  ioth 
Washington  found  the  enemy  near  the  Warren  tavern, 
about  twenty-two  miles  from  Philadelphia,  on  the  Lan- 
caster Road,  and  made  preparations  to  attack  him. 
A  deluge  of  rain  separated  the  combatants.  On  the 
19th  the  Americans,  excepting  Wayne's  and  Small- 
wood's  divisions,  crossed  to  the  east  side  of  the  river 
at  Parker's  Ford  (Lawrenceville),  hoping  to  intercept 
the  enemy  when  it  should  cross  with  the  object  of  gain- 
ing the  Philadelphia  side  of  the  river.  But  Sir  William 
Howe,  after  having  by  a  feint  induced  Washington  to 
suppose  that  he  would  take  one  of  the  upper  fords, 

7 


82  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

by  a  rapid  countermarch  during  the  night  fell  back 
to  Fatland  Ford,  just  below  Valley  Forge,  and  crossed 
to  the  eastern  side  of  the  river,  whence  he  had  an  un- 
opposed route  to  the  city. 

Meanwhile,  Wayne's  division  had  been  ordered  to 
take  post  between  the  Paoli  and  the  Warren  (names  of 
taverns  on  the  Lancaster  Road  about  two  miles  apart), 
in  order  to  attack  the  rear-guard  of  the  British,  then 
encamped  in  the  Great  Valley  between  him  and  the 
Schuylkill,  and  if  possible  to  capture  the  baggage-train 
under  its  charge  as  soon  as  it  moved  towards  the  river. 
It  was  an  expedition  which  required  the  greatest  se- 
crecy, as  its  success  depended  upon  taking  the  rear- 
guard of  the  enemy  by  surprise.  Wayne  took  every 
precaution  to  hide  his  movements  from  the  enemy,  but, 
unfortunately,  the  position  of  his  camp  was  betrayed 
to  the  English  commander  by  Tory  spies.  He  was  en- 
camped on  the  hills  above  the  Warren  tavern  on  the 
night  of  the  20th  of  September,  when  he  was  attacked 
by  an  overwhelming  force  of  the  rear-guard  of  the 
enemy,  which  he  was  preparing  to  assail  the  next  day, 
— a  force  so  large  that  two  of  the  British  regiments  of 
which  it  was  composed  were  not  engaged  in  the  hor- 
rible work  in  which  the  rest  were  so  conspicuous,  their 
services  not  being  required.  This  was  the  affair  known 
in  Revolutionary  history  as  the  "  Paoli  massacre"  the 
tragic  character  of  which  has  not  been  lessened  by  the 
legend  which  grew  out  of  it.  Subjoined  are  Wayne's 
official  report  to  General  Washington,  and  the  proceed- 
ings of  the  court-martial  which  was  ordered  at  his  re- 
quest to  investigate  the  charge  that  he  had  permitted  his 
post  to  be  surprised,  an  accusation  which,  with  Wayne's 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  S3 

fine  instincts  of  the  duty  of  a  soldier,  stung  him  to  the 
quick. 

Red  Lion  21st  Sept.  1777 — i2oClock 

Dear  General, — About  11  oClock  last  Evening  we  ware  alarmed 
by  a  firing  from  one  of  our  Out  guards — The  Division  was  Imme- 
diately formed  which  was  no  sooner  done  than  a  firing  began  on  our 
Right  Flank —  I  thought  proper  to  order  the  Division  to  file  off  by 
the  Left  except  the  Infantry  and  two  or  three  Regiments  nearest  to 
where  the  attack  began  in  order  to  favour  our  Retreat —  By  this  Time 
the  Enemy  and  we  were  not  more  than  Ten  Yards  Distant — a  well 
directed  fire  mutually  took  Place,  followed  by  a  charge  of  Bayonet — 
numbers  fell  on  each  side —  We  then  drew  off  a  Little  Distance 
and  formed  a  Front  to  oppose  to  theirs —  They  did  not  think  Pru- 
dent to  push  matters  further.  Part  of  the  Division  were  a  little  scat- 
tered but  are  Collecting  fast —  We  have  saved  all  our  Artillery, 
Ammunition  &  Stores  except  one  or  two  waggons  belonging  to  the 
Commissary's  Department — 

Gen'l  Smallwood  was  on  his  march  but  not  within  supporting  dis- 
tance he  Order'd  his  people  to  file  off  toward  this  place  where  his 
Division  and  my  own  now  lay — 

As  soon  as  we  have  refreshed  our  Troops  for  an  Hour  or  Two,  we 
shall  follow  the  Enemy  who  I  this  moment  learn  from  Major  North, 
are  marching  for  Schuylkil —  I  cant  as  yet  ascertain  our  Loss — but 
will  make  out  a  Return  as  soon  as  Possible,  our  Dead  will  be  col- 
lected &  buried  this  Afternoon —  I  must  in  Justice  to  Col's  Hart- 
ley, Humpton,  Broadhead,  Grier,  Butler,  Hubley  &  indeed  every 
Field  &  Other  Officer  inform  your  Excellency  that  I  derived  every 
assistance  possible  from  those  Gent'n  on  this  Occasion —  Whilst  I 
am  writing  I  received  yours  of  the  20th  pr.  Messrs  Dunlap  &  Learn- 
ing with  the  Intelligence  you  wished  to  Communicate —  It  will  not 
be  in  our  power  to  render  you  such  Service,  as  I  could  wish,  but  all 
that  can  you  may  Depend  on  being  done  by  Your  Excellencys  Most 

Obed't  H'bl  Serv't 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

N.B.  The  two  Letters  you  mention  I  never  Receiv'd —  I  have 
Reason  to  think  they  fell  into  the  Enemy's  hands  Last  Nights 
Affair  fully  convinces  me  of  it 

His  Excell'y  Gen'l  Washington. 


84  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

Wayne  requested  that  a  court  of  inquiry  should  be 
convened  to  investigate  his  conduct  at  the  Paoli  affair, 
and,  not  being  satisfied  with  its  finding,  he  asked,  for 
reasons  given  in  the  following  letter,  to  be  tried  by  a 
court-martial : 

Camp  near  White  March  22nd  Oct.  1777 

Sir, — I  must  Acknowledge  that  the  Opinion  of  the  Court  of  En- 
quiry has  given  me  both  pain  and  surprise — surprise  to  find  Gent'n 
go  on  the  most  Erroneous  grounds  in  two  facts  from  which  they  seem 
to  found  their  Opinion  i.e.  with  Regard  to  the  Distance,  and  the 
Carrying  off  of  one  of  the  Pickets — 

The  Distance  between  the  nearest  part  of  the  Enemy's  Camp  and 
where  I  lay — was  near  4  miles  which  was  greater  than  from  their 
Camp  to  the  Fatland  ford,  and  Richardson  ford  on  the  Schuylkill 
(being  the  very  fords  at  which  Gen'l  Howe's  Army  passed) —  Con- 
sequently had  I  been  farther  Distant  it  would  have  put  it  out  of  my 
power  to  Comply  with  your  Excellency's  Orders — i.e.  to  harass 
their  Rear — but  this  the  Court  seems  to  have  lost  sight  of;  and  may 
have  mistaken  the  Distance,  but  with  Regard  to  the  picket  I  am  almost 
tempted  to  believe  it  could  not  altogether  be  a  mistake —  Sir  it  is 
notorious  that  that  picket  was  not  Carried  off  at  all; — between  the 
time  that  Brigade  Major  Nichols  told  me  that  he  was  missing  and 
his  Return  from  Col  Butler — a  Light  Horseman  whom  I  instantly 
sent  to  the  place  where  the  picket  was  posted  Returned  and  told 
me  that  he  had  seen  him  and  that  all  was  well — when  Major  Nichols 
came  back  with  Col  Butlers  answer — I  did  tell  him  with  some  degree 
of  anger  to  go  to  bed — for  having  made  a  mistake — 

This  Circumstance  I  literally  Related  to  the  Court —  I  find  they 
gave  no  Credit  to  my  Assertion — however  the  Officer  of  that  picket 
will  be  able  to  set  this  Matter  in  a  Clear  point  of  view —  That 
picket  was  not  disturbed  until  after  the  Division  Retreated — the 
Enemy  having  Advanced  by  quite  a  Different  Route 

They  have  also  (while  very  minute  in  Other  Circumstances)  forgot 
to  mention  one  or  two  Reasons  for  my  taking  and  Remaining  in  that 
position  i.e.  Gen'l  Smallwood  being  on  his  march  to  join  me  and  to 
whom  I  had  sent  Col  Chambers  as  a  guide  to  Conduct  him  into  my 
Rear — where  he  was  expected  to  arrive  every  moment  from  two 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  85 


OClock  in  the  Afternoon  until  we  were  Attacked — and  that  I  had 
Information  that  the  Enemy  would  march  for  Schuylkill  the  next 
morning — however  they  perhaps  did  not  think  proper  to  pay  any 
Regard  to  any  Assertion  of  mine —  Yet  they  might  have  given 
some  Credit  to  Gen'l  Smallwoods  own  Letter  which  lay  before  them 
— as  well  as  to  the  Circumstance  of  the  Enemies  Actually  Marching. 

They  affect  to  give  me  some  Credit  for  taking  off  the  Artillery  and 
for  Attempting  to  Rally  the  Troops — after  being  Routed — they  don't 
say  that  the  Artillery  was  on  the  Right  when  the  Attack  was  actually 
made — and  that  Orders  were  given  to  the  Division  to  Retreat  at  the 
very  time  the  Artillery  Rec'd  the  like  Order — they  don't  say  that  I 
remained  with  the  troops  on  the  Right  which  were  posted  for  the 
purpose  of  Covering  the  Retreat — nor  do  they  say  that  I  actually 
did  Rally  a  Body  of  the  troops  and  Remained  with  them  on  the 
Ground  for  a  full  hour  which  Effectually  Covered  the  Retreat  of  the 
Greatest  part  of  the  Division  and  of  all  the  Artillery  altho  one  of 
the  pieces  met  with  misfortune  near  the  field  of  Action  which  Im- 
peded us  a  Considerable  time ;  these  Circumstances  and  these  facts 
were  in  full  proof  before  them — but  perhaps  they  did  not  think 
them  worth  mentioning — they  were  not  of  the  Criminal  Kind 

After  this  state  of  facts  which  I  pledge  my  Honor  as  a  Soldier  and 
a  Gentleman  to  give  full  and  Ample  proof  of — I  appeal  to  Your  Ex- 
cellence's own  feelings  whether  I  can  be  easy  under  so  severe  and 
unjust  a  Charge —  I  must  therefore  beg  an  Immediate  trial  by  a 
Gen'l  Court  Martial  Your  Compliance  will  much  Oblige  your  Ex- 
cellencys  Most  Ob't  and 

Very  Humb  Ser't 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

[Gen'l  Washington.] 

When  brought  before  the  general  court-martial  the 
following  was  his  defence : 

Gent'n,—  The  Charge  against  me  is  "  That  I  had  timely  Notice 
of  the  Enemy's  Intention  to  Attack  the  Troops  under  my  Command 
on  the  Night  of  the  20th  Instant — and  that  notwithstanding  that 
Intelligence   I  neglected  making  a  Disposition  till  it  was  too  late 


86  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

either  to  Annoy  the  Enemy,  or  to  make  a  Retreat  without  the  utmost 
Danger  and  Confusion" 

The  first  part  of  the  Charge  "  that  I  had  timely  Notice  of  the 
Enemys  Intention  to  attack  the  Troops  under  my  Command"  is 
very  Readily  Answered — 

I  shall  briefly  Relate  what  these  gentlemen  call  a  timely  Notice — 
A  Mr  Jones  an  Old  Gent'n  who  lives  near  by  where  we  were  En- 
camped— came  to  my  Quarters  between  8  and  9  oClock  at  Night  and 
Informed  me,  Col's  Hartley,  Broadhead  &  Temple  that  a  servant  boy 
of  Mr  Clayton's  had  been  taken  by  the  Enemy  and  liberated  again — 
who  said  that  he  had  heard  some  of  their  Soldiers  say — that  they 
Intended  to  Attack  me  that  night.  Altho'  this  could  not  be  Deemed 
a  Sufficient  Notice  upon  any  Military  principle — yet  notwithstanding 
I  Immediately  Ordered  out  a  Number  of  Videttes  [horse  pickets] 
in  Addition  to  those  already  fixed  with  Orders  to  patrol  all  the 
Roads  leading  to  the  Enemy —  I  also  planted  two  new  pickets,  the 
One  on  a  by  path  leading  from  the  Warren  to  my  Camp,  the  Other  to 
the  Right  and  in  the  Rear — which  made  that  Night  not  less  than 
six  Different  Pickets 

I  had  Exclusive  of  these  a  horse  Picket  under  Capt.  Stoddard 
well  Advanced  on  the  Swedesford  Road — and  on  the  Very  Road  the 
Enemy  Advanced — 

But  the  first  Intelligence  I  rec'd  of  their  Advancing  was  from  one 
of  the  very  Videttes  which  I  sent  out  in  Consequence  of  the  Infor- 
mation from  Mr  Jones,  who  had  only  time  to  go  out  about  a  mile 
before  he  met  them. 

Immediately  upon  this  the  troops  were  all  Ordered  under  Arms — 
and  I  myself  in  Person  Ordered  the  whole  to  take  off  their  Coats 
and  put  their  Cartridge  Boxes  under  to  save  the  Cartridges  from 
Damage,  [by  rain]  this  Gent'n  don't  look  like  a  surprise — it  Rather 
proves  that  we  were  prepared  to  move  or  Act  as  Occasion  required — 
when  once  we  were  Informed  which  way  they  should  approach — 
As  soon  as  it  was  Discovered  that  they  were  pushing  for  Our  Right 
where  our  Artillery  was  planted — I  Ordered  the  Division  to  wheel 
to  the  Right  and  file  off  by  the  left  along  a  Road  leading  on  the 
Summit  of  the  Hill  towards  the  White  Horse — it  being  the  Very 
Road  upon  which  the  Division  had  moved  two  miles  the  preceeding 
Evening —      The    Division   Wheeled   Accordingly — the    Artillery 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  87 

moved  off  &  owing  to  some  Neglect  or  Misapprehension  in  Col. 
Humpton  (which  is  not  uncommon)  the  Troops  did  not  move  until 
a  second  and  third  Order  was  sent  altho'  they  were  wheeled  and 
faced  for  the  purpose 

At  the  very  time  this  Order  for  Retreat  was  given  I  took  the  Light 
Infantry  and  first  Reg't  and  formed  them  on  the  Right  and  Re- 
mained there  with  them  and  the  Horse  in  Order  to  Cover  the  Re- 
treat. If  this  was  making  no  Disposition  I  acknowledge  I  know 
not  what  a  Disposition  is — 

These  troops  met  and  Rec'd  the  Enemy  with  a  Spirit  becoming 
free  Americans  but  were  forced  to  give  way —  The  neglect  or  mis- 
apprehension of  Col  Humpton  had  Detained  the  Division  too  long 
I  was  therefore  Necessitated  to  form  the  fourth  Reg't  to  Receive  the 
Enemy  and  favour  the  Retreat  of  the  Others ;  this  Col  Butler  was  a 
Witness  of. 

About  three  Hundred  Yards  in  the  Rear  I  again  Rallied  such  of 
the  Division  as  took  the  proper  Route.  Those  who  went  a  Contrary 
way  and  out  of  supporting  distance  of  the  Artillery  perhaps  Col 
Humpton  can  give  the  best  Acc't  of —  I  call  upon  him  to  know 
whether  he  once  Attempted  to  Rally  any  part  of  the  troops,  and 
where,  and  why  he  did  not  Obey  my  Orders  in  Retreating  when  the 
Troops  were  Wheeled  and  faced  for  the  purpose : 

Here  I  have  a  fair  field  for  Recrimination  were  I  so  Disposed —  I 
shall  waive  the  subject  and  beg  leave  to  Read  the  Orders  which  I 
rec'd  from  his  Excellency  from  time  to  time. 

In  the  eyes  and  Judgment  of  Gentlemen  and  of  Officers  I  trust  I 
stand  Justified  for  the  part  I  took  that  Evening —  I  had  the  fullest  and 
Clearest  evidence  that  the  Enemy  would  march  that  Morning  at  2 
OClock  for  the  Schuylkill.  I  had  sent  Col.  Chambers  as  a  Guide  to 
Gen'l  Smallwood  to  Conduct  him  into  my  Rear — he  was  expected  to 
Arrive  every  hour  from  two  o'clock  in  the  Afternoon  until  we  were 
attacked —  At  which  time  Gen'l  Smallwood  was  advancing  and  by 
Orders  Retreated  to  the  White  Horse — 

Let  me  put  a  Question — Suppose  after  all  these  Repeated  Orders 
from  His  Excellency — and  the  Arrival  of  Gen'l  Smallwood  I  had 
Retreated,  before  I  knew  whether  the  Enemy  Intended  to  Attack  me 
or  not,  and  that  they  should  have  Marched  for  the  Schuylkill  that 
Morning  [which  they  Actually  did] — would  not  these  very  Gentle- 


S8  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 


men  have  been  the  first  to  default  me — would  not  His  Excellency 
with  the  Greatest  Justice  have  Ordered  me  in  Arrest  for  Cowardice 
and  Disobedience  of  his  Repeated  preemptory  and  pointed  Orders — 
would  I  not  have  stood  Culpable  in  the  eyes  of  the  World — would  I 
not  Justly  merit  either  Immediate  Death  or  Cashiering?  I  Certainly 
would — what  line  could  I  follow  but  that  which  I  did,  what  more 
could  be  done  on  the  Occation  than  what  was  done — the  Artillery 
Amunition  &c  &c  were  Covered  and  Saved  by  a  body  of  Brave 
troops  which  were  Rallied  and  Remained  on  the  Ground  with  me 
for  more  than  an  hour  after  that  Gent'n  had  Effected  his  Escape 
from  Danger  tho'  perhaps  not  without  Confusion — I  hold  it  needless 
to  say  more  on  the  Occation — I  rest  my  Honor,  Character  which  to 
me  is  more  Dear  than  life  in  the  Hands  of  Gentlemen — who  when 
Deciding  on  my  Honor  will  not  forget  their  own — 

The  court-martial  was  unanimously  of  opinion  that 
General  Wayne  was  "  not  guilty  of  the  charge  exhibited 
against  him,  but  that  he,  on  the  night  of  the  20th  of 
September  last,  did  every  duty  that  could  be  expected 
from  an  active,  brave  and  vigilant  officer,  under  the 
orders  which  he  then  had.  The  Court  do  acquit  him 
with  the  highest  honor."  The  commander-in-chief  ap- 
proved the  sentence. 

The  official  despatch  of  General  Wayne  to  the  com- 
mander-in-chief dissipates,  it  will  be  perceived,  some  of 
the  misapprehensions  which  have  been  handed  down 
to  posterity  by  the  popular  legend  concerning  the 
"  Paoli  massacre/'  The  attack  was  not,  as  clearly  ap- 
pears, a  surprise.  The  special  horror  attending  it  grew 
out  of  the  common  belief  that  all  the  slaughter  of  that 
terrible  night  was  due  to  a  complete  surprise,  and  that 
the  bayonet  alone  and  no  fire-arms  were  employed. 
But  it  will  be  seen  that  General  Wayne  states  in  his 
official  report  that  on  the  first  attack  "  the  enemy  and 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  89 

we  were  not  more  than  ten  yards  distant,"  and  that  "a 
well-directed  fire  mutually  took  place,  followed  by  a 
charge  of  bayonet."  The  whole  number  of  Wayne's 
detachment  was  about  twelve  hundred  men  ;  of  these 
sixty-one  were  killed.  The  Americans  saved  all  their 
artillery,  ammunition,  and  stores:  so  that  it  would  ap- 
pear that,  bloody  as  the  fight  was,  the  term  "  massacre" 
is  misapplied. 

In  order  to  ascertain  the  true  significance  of  the 
attack  at  Paoli  upon  the  fortunes  of  the  campaign 
which  resulted  in  the  occupation  of  Philadelphia,  a 
somewhat  minute  account  of  the  movements  of  Wash- 
ington's army  in  pursuit  of  the  enemy  is  necessary. 
That  army  crossed  the  Schuylkill  on  the  14th  of  Sep- 
tember. On  the  15th  it  advanced  along  the  Lancaster 
Road  to  a  point  about  twenty  miles  from  the  city,  near 
the  White  Horse  tavern.  The  general's  object,  as 
stated  in  his  letter  of  that  date  to  the  President  of  Con- 
gress, was  to  place  his  army  between  the  enemy  and 
the  Schuylkill,  as  it  was  feared  that  the  British  would 
attempt  to  cross  that  river  at  Swede's  Ford.  On  the 
1 6th,  near  the  White  Horse  tavern,  the  enemy  advanced 
upon  our  position.  Here  a  skirmish  took  place,  but,  a 
violent  storm  coming  up,  the  conflict  ceased  for  that 
day.  Previous  to  this  skirmish  Wayne  had  written  on 
the  15th  to  General  Mifflin,  foreseeing  this  movement 
of  the  enemy  and  insisting  upon  the  importance  of  at- 
tacking them  before  they  reached  the  fords  of  the  river. 
"We  intend,"  he  says,  "to  push  for  the  White  Horse 
this  evening  in  order  to  gain  their  left  flank  as  soon 
as  possible.  May  they  not  steal  a  march  and  pass  the 
fords  in  the  vicinity  of  the  Falls  unless  we  march  down 


9o  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

at  once  and  give  them  battle  ?"  After  the  skirmish  of 
the  1 6th,  in  which,  by  the  way,  the  portion  of  the  Amer- 
ican army  engaged  did  not  distinguish  itself,  the  Amer- 
icans took  post  at  the  Yellow  Springs,  about  five  miles 
from  the  Paoli,  and  the  British  in  the  Great  Valley  of 
Chester  County  near  the  river.  On  the  17th  our  main 
army  marched  from  the  Springs  northward  to  War- 
wick, a  depot  of  army  ordnance,  about  nine  miles  west 
of  the  river.  On  the  19th  Washington  reported  to  Con- 
gress that  he  had  reached  Parker's  Ford  (Lawrence- 
ville),  and  that  it  was  his  intention  to  cross  the  river  at 
that  point  and  proceed  downward  on  the  east  side  to 
oppose  the  enemy's  crossing  at  Fatland  and  Swede's 
Fords.     This  was  accordingly  done. 

In  the  mean  time  General  Washington,  in  order  to 
facilitate  the  execution  of  his  plans,  detached  on  the  1 7th 
from  his  army  at  Yellow  Springs  the  divisions  of  Wayne 
and  Smallvvood,  with  instructions  to  take  a  position 
secretly  in  the  rear  of  the  British  army,  so  that  when  the 
enemy  began  to  cross  the  river  at  Swede's  Ford  and 
Fatland  (both  of  which  positions  Washington  had  for- 
tified on  the  east  side)  it  might  be  attacked  in  the  rear 
by  Wayne  while  the  main  army  would  resist  its  passage 
of  the  fords.  On  the  19th  these  orders  were  repeated 
with  increased  emphasis.  Wayne  was  directed  "  to  move 
forward  on  the  enemy,"  and  was  promised  reinforce- 
ments from  the  divisions  of  Maxwell  and  Porter.  On 
the  2 1  st,  as  appears  from  the  following  letter,  these 
orders  were  revoked,  and  Wayne  was  directed  instead 
of  moving  on  the  enemy  to  join  General  Washington 
at  once.  These  orders  were  intercepted  by  the  enemy 
and  never  reached  Wayne's  hands.    Had  they  done  so 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  91 

it  would,  of  course,  have  been  too  late,  the  "  massacre" 
having  taken  place  the  night  before.  So  completely 
was  the  communication  between  Washington  and 
Wayne  cut  off  by  the  British  that,  although  they  were 
within  a  few  miles  of  each  other,  it  is  evident  from  the 
following  letter,  written  on  the  23d  of  September  and 
dated  "  four  miles  from  Pots  Grove,"  that  Washing- 
ton had  not  yet  heard  of  the  affair  at  Paoli,  for  on  the 
same  day  Washington  writes  to  the  President  of  Con- 
gress (having  crossed  to  the  east  side  of  the  Schuylkill), 
"  I  am  also  obliged  to  wait  for  Generals  Wayne  and 
Smallwood,  who  were  left  on  the  other  side  of  Schuyl- 
kill in  hopes  of  falling  upon  the  enemy's  rear,  but  they 
have  eluded  them  as  well  as  us;"  that  is,  they  had  crossed 
the  fords  and  were  on  their  march  to  Philadelphia. 

General  Washington  to  General  Wayne. 

Four  miles  from  Pots  Grove  23d  Sept.  1777 
D'r  Sir, — I  received  your  favor  of  yesterday  morning  and  am 
apprehensive  as  you  have  not  acknowledged  the  receipt  of  a  Letter, 
I  wrote  you  the  night  before  [21st],  that  it  has  fallen  into  the  Enemy's 
hands.  By  that  I  directed  Gen'l  Smallwood  &  yourself  to  march 
immediately  with  your  Respective  Corps  by  the  way  of  Potts-Grove 
to  join  me.  You  will  both  pursue  the  Line  thereby  marked  out,  & 
which  I  have  mentioned  above.  For  it  is  my  wish  that  we  should 
draw  our  whole  force  together,  as  soon  as  possible,  and  that  I  should 
be  immediately  joined  by  your  Corps.  Should  we  continue  detached 
&  in  a  divided  state  I  fear  we  shall  neither  be  able  to  attack,  or 
defend  ourselves  with  a  good  prospect  of  success — 

I  am  D'r  Sir 

Y'r  Most  Obed  Serv't, 

G'e  Washington. 

Ser't  Bingham  &  Hambright  Crossed  at  the  Middle  ferry  in  One 
of  the  ferry  Boats,  being  two  there — but  no  Bridge.     Mr.  Galloway 


92  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

has  the  Inspection  of  all   Market  people,  or  Others — and  grants 
passes — was  very  Inquisitive  about  our  Camp 

The  Soldiers  were  very  free  in  expressing  their  sentiments 

G.  Washington. 
To 

Brigad'r  Gen'l  Wayne. 

The  English  soldiers  do  not  seem  to  have  proved 
themselves  such  savages  elsewhere  as  they  are  repre- 
sented to  have  been  at  Paoli.  Here  is  an  account  of 
their  doings  on  the  same  night  at  Waynesborough,  the 
residence  of  the  general,  about  two  miles  from  the 
battle-field  : 

East  Town  Sep'r  22nd  1777 
Dear  Anthony, — I  am  very  glad  to  see  a  few  lines  from  you  as 
we  have  had  disagreeable  Acc'ts  of  the  [Torn]  terrible  Night  scare. 
Some  said  you  were  killed,  &  others,  that  you  were  a  prisoner,  I  was 
still  in  hopes  of  better  intelligence ;  the  Night  before  last  a  number 
of  the  British  troops  surrounded  your  House  in  search  of  you,  but 
being  disappointed  in  not  finding  you,  they  took  poor  Robert  & 
James,  but  behaved  with  the  utmost  politeness  to  the  Women,  and 
said  they  only  wanted  the  General.  They  did  not  disturb  the  least 
Article.  There  has  been  several  Cannon  shot  heard  today  in  this 
Neighbourhood.  I  am  very  uneasy  to  hear  the  issue —  God  Bless 
&  preserve  you  is  the  sincere  prayer  of  your 

Brother  &c 

Ab'm  Robinson. 
Sally  joins  in  love — 
To 

General  Wayne 
at 

Red  Lion. 

Sir  William  Howe's  army  having  reached  German- 
town,  and  Washington's  army  being  encamped  in  the 
Whitemarsh  Valley,  it  was  determined   to  attack  the 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  93 

British  as  soon  as  practicable.  Washington  had  learned 
that  a  considerable  portion  of  the  enemy's  force  had 
been  detached  to  capture  the  works  on  the  Delaware 
at  Billingsport,  Mud  Island,  and  Red  Bank,  which,  with 
the  obstructions  in  the  river,  guarded  the  approach  to 
Philadelphia  by  water.  For  obvious  reasons,  it  was 
essential  that  this  approach  should  be  made  sure  and 
safe  for  the  British  fleet.  Howe  had  despatched  a  con- 
siderable body  of  men  to  reduce  the  works,  and  Wash- 
ington asked  the  opinion  of  his  general  officers  on  the 
28th  of  September  whether,  while  the  enemy  was  thus 
weakened  in  Germantown,  opportunity  should  not  be 
taken  to  attack  them.  Generals  Smallwood,  Scott, 
Wayne,  and  Porter  were  in  favor  of  an  immediate 
attack,  while  the  other  ten  general  officers  thought  that 
it  should  be  delayed  until  they  had  received  the  rein- 
forcements which  had  been  sent  for  from  the  Northern 
army.  As  to  Wayne's  opinion,  if  we  are  to  judge 
from  the  annexed  letter  to  his  wife,  hopeful  as  he 
was  at  all  times,  he  was  never  more  hopeful  than  at 
this  crisis,  which  to  many  seemed  so  alarming.  The 
letter  is  interesting,  too,  as  showing  his  opinion  of  the 
condition  of  the  army,  which,  after  all  the  reverses  it 
had  undergone,  is  represented  as  full  of  health  and 
spirits. 

Trappe  30th  Sept  1777 
Dear  Polly, — I  thought  that  you  had  a  mind  far  above  being 
Depressed  at  a  little  unfavourable  Circumstance — the  Enemy's  being 
in  Possession  of  Phila  is  of  no  more  Consequence  than  their  being 
in  possession  of  the  City  of  New  York  or  Boston — they  may  hold  it 
for  a  time — but  must  leave  it  with  Circumstances  of  shame  and  Dis- 
grace before  the  Close  of  the  Winter — 

Our  Army  is  now  in  full  health  and  spirits,  and  far  stronger  than 


94  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

it  was  at  the  Battle  of  the  Brandywine —  We  are  daily  Receiving 
Reinforcements,  and  are  now  drawing  near  the  Enemy — who  will 
shortly  pay  dear  for  the  little  Advantages  they  have  lately  gained — 
Our  Army  to  the  northward  under  Gen'l  Gates  is  Victorious — mat- 
ters looked  much  more  Gloomy  in  that  Quarter  four  weeks  ago — 
than  they  do  at  this  time  here — it  is  our  turn  next — and  altho'  ap- 
pearances are  a  little  Gloomy  at  present — yet  they  will  be  soon  Dis- 
sipated and  a  more  pleasing  prospect  take  place —  Give  my  kindest 
love  and  wishes  to  both  Our  Mothers  and  Sisters — tell  them  my 
sword  will  shortly  point  out  the  way  to  Victory  peace  and  Happi- 
ness— kiss  our  little  people  for  me —  Remove  my  books  and  Valua- 
ble Writings  some  Distance  from  my  own  House — if  not  already 
done — this  is  but  an  Act  of  prudence — and  not  to  be  Considered  as 
proceeding  from  any  Other  Motive 

Adieu  my  Dear  Girl  and 

believe  me  Yours 

Most  Sincerely 
Ant'y  Wayne. 

Washington  on  this  occasion  decided  to  take  the 
advice  of  the  minority  of  his  generals,  and  on  the  3d 
of  October  he  moved  his  army,  consisting  of  about 
eleven  thousand  men,  from  his  camp  between  the  Per- 
kiomen  and  Skippack  Creeks  towards  the  enemy's 
lines  at  Germantown.  According  to  Washington's  plan, 
Sullivan  was  to  command  the  right  wing,  composed  of 
his  own  division  and  that  of  General  Wayne.  They 
were  to  march  down  the  main  road  from  Chestnut  Hill 
to  Germantown,  sometimes  called  the  Skippack  Road. 
They  were  nominally  supported  on  the  right  by  the 
Pennsylvania  militia  under  General  Armstrong,  who 
took  no  part  in  the  action,  and  on  the  left  by  General 
Greene.  The  objective  point  was  the  market-house 
in  Germantown,  near  which,  extending  along  School- 
House  Lane  on  the  right  of  the  Americans,  and  on  the 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  95 

left  on  Church  Lane  or  near  by,  the  main  body  of  the 
British  army  was  posted.  It  is  not  necessary  for  our 
purpose  to  discuss  the  many  questions  which  have  been 
debated  concerning  the  behavior  of  certain  corps  or  of 
certain  generals  in  this  battle.  It  ought,  however,  to  be 
understood  that  the  left  wing  under  General  Greene, 
owing  to  the  distance  it  had  to  march  and  the  nature  of 
the  ground,  was  not  able  to  engage  in  time  the  English 
regiments.  The  result  was  that  Sullivan  and  Wayne 
were  exposed  to  its  attack  besides  that  of  the  enemy's 
force  immediately  in  their  own  front.  We  need  only 
recount  the  part  taken  by  General  Wayne  and  his 
division  in  the  battle,  and  that  is  one  of  the  few  points 
connected  with  it  about  which  there  never  has  been 
any  difference  of  opinion.  The  best  account  of  that 
portion  of  the  engagement  in  which  he  and  his  division 
were  the  principal  actors  is  given  in  his  letter  to  his 
wife,  and  in  the  relation  of  an  officer  of  the  Fifty-Second 
English  Regiment,  both  of  which  are  subjoined. 

General  Wayne  to  Mrs.  Wayne. 

Camp  near  Pawling  Mill 

6th  Oct  1777 

Dear  Polly, — On  the  4th  Instant  at  the  dawn  of  day  we  attacked 
General  Howe's  Army  at  the  upper  end  of  Germantown —  The 
Action  soon  became  General — when  we  advanced  on  the  Enemy  with 
Charged  Bayonets — they  broke  at  first  without  waiting  to  Receive  us 
— but  soon  formed  again — when  a  heavy  and  well  directed  fire  took 
place  on  each  side —  The  Enemy  again  gave  way — but  being  sup- 
ported by  the  Grenadiers  Returned  to  the  Charge —  Gen'l  Sullivans 
Division  &  Conways  Brigade  were  at  this  time  Engaged  to  the  Right 
or  west  of  Germantown — whilst  my  Division  had  the  Whole  Right 
wing  of  the  Enemy's  Army  to  Encounter  on  the  left  or  east  of  the 
Town — two  thirds  of  our  army  being  then  too  far  to  the  east  to  afford 


96  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

us  any  Assistance.  However  the  Unparalelled  bravery  of  the  troops 
surmounted  every  Difficulty,  and  the  enemy  retreated  in  the  utmost 
Confusion —  Our  people  Remembering  the  Action  of  the  Night  of 
the  20th  of  Sep'r  near  the  Warren — pushed  on  with  their  Bayonets — 
and  took  Ample  Vengeance  for  that  Nights  Work —  Our  Officers 
Exerted  themselves  to  save  many  of  the  poor  wretches  who  were 
Crying  for  Mercy — but  to  little  purpose ;  the  Rage  and  fury  of  the 
Soldiers  were  not  to  be  Restrained  for  some  time — at  least  not 
until  great  numbers  of  the  Enemy  fell  by  our  Bayonets — the  fog 
together  with  the  smoke  Occasioned  by  our  Cannon,  and  Musketry 
— made  it  almost  as  dark  as  night— our  people  mistaking  one 
Another  for  the  Enemy  frequently  Exchanged  several  shots  before 
they  discovered  their  Error — we  had  now  pushed  the  Enemy  near 
three  miles  and  were  in  possession  of  their  whole  Encampment 
when  a  large  body  of  troops  were  Discovered  Advancing  on  our 
left  flank — which  being  taken  for  the  Enemy  we  retreated.  After 
Retreating  for  about  two  miles  we  found  it  was  our  own  people — 
who  were  Originally  Designed  to  Attack  the  Right  Wing  of  the 
Enemy's  Army — 

The  fog  and  this  mistake  prevented  us  from  following  a  victory 
that  in  all  Human  probability  would  have  put  an  end  to  the 
American  War — 

Gen'l  Howe  for  a  long  time  could  not  persuade  himself  that  we 
had  run  from  Victory — but  the  fog  clearing  up  he  ventured  to  follow 
us  with  all  his  Infantry,  Grenadiers  and  Light  Horse  with  some  field 
pieces — I,  at  this  time  was  in  the  Rear  and  finding  Mr.  Howe 
Determined  to  push  us  hard,  drew  up  in  Order  of  Battle — and 
waited  his  Approach- 
When  he  Advanced  near  we  gave  him  a  few  Cannon  shot  with 
some  Musketry — which  caused  him  to  break  and  Run  with  the  utmost 
Confusion — this  ended  the  Action  of  that  day — which  Continued 
without  Intermission  from  day  light  until  near  twelve  O' Clock —  I 
had  forgotten  to  mention  that  my  Roan  Horse  was  killed  under  me 
within  a  few  yards  of  the  Enemy's  front — and  my  left  foot  a  little 
bruised  by  one  of  their  Cannon  shot — but  not  so  much  as  to  prevent 
me  from  walking — my  poor  horse  Received  one  Musket  Ball  in  the 
breast — and  one  in  the  flank  at  the  same  Instant  that  I  had  a  slight 
touch  on  my  left  hand — which  is  scarcely  worth  mentioning — upon 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  97 

the  Whole  it  was  a  Glorious  day —     Our  men  are  in  the  highest 
Spirits — and  I  am  Confident  we  shall  give  them  a  total  Defeat  the 
next  Action  ;  which  is  at  no  great  Distance 
My  best  love  and  wishes  to  all  friends 

Adieu  my  Dear  Girl 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

N.B.  I  have  heard  that  you  Intend  to  send  Rachel  to  market — 
I  would  not  have  it  done  for  One  thousand  Guineas — 

From  "History  of  the  Fifty -Second  British  Regiment,11  by  General 

Hunter. 

"The  first  that  General  Howe  knew  of  Washington's  marching 
against  us  was  by  his  attacking  us  at  daybreak.  General  Wayne 
commanded  the  advance  and  fully  expected  to  be  avenged  for  the 
surprise  we  had  given  him.  When  the  first  shots  were  fired  at  our 
pickets,  so  much  had  we  all  Wayne's  affair  in  remembrance  that  the 
battalion  were  out  under  arms  in  a  minute.  At  this  time  the  day 
had  just  broke,  but  it  was  a  very  foggy  morning,  and  so  dark  that 
we  could  not  see  a  hundred  yards  before  us.  Just  as  the  battalion 
formed,  the  pickets  came  in  and  said  the  enemy  were  advancing  in 
force.  They  had  barely  joined  the  battalion  when  we  heard  a  loud 
cry,  'Have  at  the  bloodhounds,  revenge  Wayne's  affair!'  and  they 
immediately  fired  a  volley.  We  gave  them  one  in  return,  cheered 
and  charged.  As  it  was  near  the  end  of  the  campaign,  our  battalion 
was  very  weak ;  it  did  not  consist  of  more  than  300  men,  and  we 
had  no  support  nearer  than  Germantown  a  mile  in  our  rear.  On 
our  charging  they  gave  way  on  all  sides,  but  again  and  again  re- 
newed the  attack  with  fresh  troops  and  a  greater  force.  We  charged 
them  twice  till  the  battalion  was  so  reduced  by  killed  and  wounded 
that  the  bugle  was  sounded  to  retreat ;  indeed,  had  we  not  retreated 
at  the  time  we  did  we  should  all  have  been  taken  or  killed,  as  two 
columns  of  the  enemy  had  nearly  got  round  our  flank.  But  this 
was  the  first  time  we  had  ever  retreated  from  the  Americans,  and  it 
was  with  great  difficulty  we  could  get  the  men  to  obey  our  orders. 

"The  enemy  were  kept  so  long  in  check  that  the  two  Brigades 
had  advanced  to  the  entrance  of  Beggarstown,  when  they  met  our 
battalion  retreating.  By  this  time  General  Howe  had  come  up,  and 
seeing  the  battalion  retreating,  all  broken,  he  got  into  a  passion, 

8 


98  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

and  exclaimed,  '  For  shame,  Light  Infantry,  I  never  saw  you  retreat 
before,  form  !  form  !  it  is  only  a  scouting  party.'  However  he  was 
quickly  convinced  that  it  was  more  than  a  scouting  party  as  the 
heads  of  the  enemy's  columns  soon  appeared.  One  coming  through 
Beggarstown  with  three  pieces  of  cannon  in  their  front  immediately 
fired  with  grape  at  the  crowd  that  was  standing  with  General  Howe 
under  a  large  chestnut  tree.  I  think  I  never  saw  people  enjoy  a 
discharge  of  grape  before,  but  we  really  all  felt  pleased  to  see  the 
enemy  make  such  an  appearance,  and  to  hear  the  grape  rattle  about 
the  Commander  in-Chief 's  ears,  after  he  had  accused  the  battalion 
of  having  run  away  from  a  scouting  party." 

In  these  three  engagements  of  Brandywine,  Paoli, 
and  Germantown,  in  which  Wayne's  division  was  so 
conspicuous,  that  division  was  composed  entirely  of 
Pennsylvania  troops.  They  were  engaged  for  the  first 
time  in  any  serious  conflict  in  these  three  battles  on 
their  native  soil,  striving  to  rescue  the  chief  city  of 
their  Province  from  the  grasp  of  the  enemy.  General 
Wayne's  force  at  no  time  during  the  campaign  ex- 
ceeded fifteen  hundred  men,  rank  and  file,  present  for 
duty.  It  seems  that  we  ought  to  dwell  upon  the  mili- 
tary behavior  of  these  men  during  the  campaign,  while 
recounting  the  achievements  of  their  leader  with  a  little 
more  fulness  than  is  usual.  Unfortunately,  our  records 
tell  us  chiefly  of  the  conduct  of  the  field  officers  of  the 
regiments,  although  nothing  can  be  clearer  than  that 
many  an  unnamed  hero  fell  in  the  performance  of  his 
duty,  whose  memory  we  are  forced  to  leave  "  unwept, 
unhonored,  and  unsung."  Wayne's  division  was  made 
up,  as  we  have  said,  of  two  brigades,  both  composed 
of  four  infantry  regiments.  They  were  commanded 
during  the  Revolution,  and  especially  in  the  campaign 
which  ended  with  the  battle  of  Germantown,  by  men  who 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  99 

in  that  day  were  noted  in  the  army  for  their  devotion, 
capacity,  and  courage.  The  possession  of  these  quali- 
ties is  attested  by  the  manner  in  which  they  bore  the 
trials,  fatigues,  and  dangers  of  the  campaign,  and  by  the 
number  of  the  officers  who  were  killed  and  wounded 
during  its  duration  of  about  twenty  days.  When  we 
recall  the  steadiness  with  which  this  division  held  its 
post  at  Chad's  Ford  until  the  right  wing  of  the  army 
had  been  broken  up  and  was  retreating,  and  its  brilliant 
charge  which  pursued  the  enemy's  force  for  nearly 
three  miles  through  the  street  at  Germantown,  and 
which  needed  only  the  support  that  it  had  a  right  to 
count  upon,  but  which  it  did  not  receive,  to  make  that 
battle,  in  the  language  of  its  intrepid  commander,  "a 
victory  that  in  all  human  probability  would  have  put 
an  end  to  the  American  war,"  we  may  well  be  proud 
of  the  deeds  of  the  Pennsylvania  line  in  the  Army  of 
the  Revolution.  The  hardships  of  the  campaign  in 
which  these  men  were  engaged  is  shown  by  this,  that 
at  its  close  scarcely  more  than  half  the  men  with  which 
it  was  begun  remained  in  the  ranks. 

Most  of  the  officers  who  led  the  regiments  had  been 
fellow-soldiers  of  Wayne  from  the  beginning,  and  ex- 
perience had  inspired  them  with  confidence  in  the  ca- 
pacity of  their  leader.  Colonel  Chambers  of  the  First 
Regiment,  of  whose  exploits  in  recovering  the  guns  at 
Brandywine  we  have  spoken,  was  a  veteran  at  that  time 
in  the  Army  of  the  Revolution.  He  had  stood  by 
Arnold's  side  when  he  was  wounded  at  the  battle  of 
Bemis  Heights,  and  had  gained  great  credit  for  his  gal- 
lantry in  the  fierce  assault  made  on  the  German  troops 
of  Burgoyne's  army;  he  had  also  led  the  regiment  in 


ioo  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

its  charge  upon  the  troops  occupying  the  town  of  New 
Brunswick,  and  had  driven  them  out  of  their  intrench- 
ments.  In  the  most  hazardous  service  at  Brandywine 
he  was,  as  we  have  said,  wounded,  and  notwithstanding 
he  and  a  considerable  number  of  his  officers  and  men 
were  disabled  by  the  fire  of  the  enemy,  they  retained 
steadily  their  position,  and  with  the  rest  of  the  division 
retreated  in  good  order. 

The  Second  Regiment  was  commanded  at  the  bat- 
tle of  Germantown  by  Major  Williams  until  he  fell, 
wounded,  and  was  taken  prisoner.  Captain  Howell 
then  assumed  the  command.  The  regiment  seems  to 
have  lost  heavily  both  at  Brandywine  and  at  German- 
town,  six  lieutenants  besides  its  commander  having  in 
these  two  battles  been  either  killed  or  wounded. 

The  Third,  Colonel  Craig,  the  Sixth,  Colonel  Bicker, 
the  Ninth,  Colonel  Nagel,  and  the  Twelfth,  Colonel 
Cook,  were  not  under  Wayne's  command,  but  formed 
Conway's  brigade  of  Lord  Stirling's  division  at  Brandy- 
wine and  Germantown.  Of  this  brigade  La  Fayette 
speaks  in  his  Memoirs.  He  tells  of  the  brilliant  manner 
in  which  "General  Conway  (the  Gallicized  Hibernian), 
Chevalier  of  St.  Louis,  acquitted  himself  at  the  head  of 
his  brigade  of  eight  hundred  men  in  the  encounter 
with  the  troops  of  Cornwallis  near  Birmingham  Meet- 
ing-House." 

The  Fourth  lost  half  of  its  effective  force  in  this 
short  campaign,  its  major,  Lamar,  having  been  killed 
and  six  of  his  lieutenants  wounded  at  Paoli.  The  last 
words  of  Major  Lamar  on  receiving  his  death-wound 
were,  "  Halt,  boys.     Give  these  assassins  one  fire." 

Of  the  Fifth  at  Brandywine,  Colonel  Francis  Johnston 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  101 

was  taken  prisoner,  and  its  lieutenant-colonel,  Frazer, 
and  the  adjutant,  Harper,  were  captured  the  next  day. 
One  captain  was  made  prisoner  at  Germantown,  and 
the  major  and  two  lieutenants  were  wounded.  In 
the  Seventh,  commanded  by  Lieutenant- Colonel  Grier, 
he  and  two  of  his  captains  and  four  lieutenants  were 
wounded  at  Paoli,  and  sixty-one  of  the  rank  and  file 
of  the  regiment  were  killed,  besides  a  large  number 
wounded  or  taken  prisoners.  Part  of  the  Eighth  Regi- 
ment had  been  detached,  and  was  acting  as  a  rifle 
corps  in  the  place  of  Morgan's,  which  had  been  sent 
to  the  northward.  Its  lieutenant-colonel,  Stephen 
Bayard,  did  gallant  service,  and  was  wounded.  Doubt- 
less much  the  same  report  might  be  made  of  the  other 
regiments  of  the  Pennsylvania  line  which  we  have  not 
named,  but  either  the  record  of  their  services  has  not 
been  preserved  or  it  is  too  imperfect  to  permit  us  to 
speak  of  them  with  certainty.  What  Wayne  said  of  his 
own  officers  in  the  official  account  which  we  have  criven 
of  the  affair  at  Paoli,  of  Hartley,  of  Humpton,  of  Brod- 
head,  of  Grier,  of  William  Butler,  and  of  Hubley,  might 
doubtless  have  been  said  with  equal  truth  of  all  his 
officers  and  their  subordinates  who  served  during  the 
campaign,  of  the  living  as  of  the  dead,  of  the  prisoner 
as  well  as  of  the  freeman.  None  the  less  the  organiza- 
tion was  much  broken  up  by  the  hardships  the  men  had 
undergone,  and  a  new  "arrangement,"  as  it  was  called, 
was  made  at  the  close  of  the  year.  The  appointment 
of  the  following  officers  to  vacancies  may  indicate 
Wayne's  estimate  of  their  conduct  during  the  cam- 
paign :  Colonels :  Nagel  to  the  Tenth  ;  Bicker  to  the 
Second;  R.  Butler  to  the  Ninth  ;  Thomas  Craig  to  the 


102  MAJOR  GENERAL   WAYNE. 

Third.  Lieutenant- Colonels  :  Smith  to  the  Ninth  ;  Miller 
to  the  Second ;  Harmar  to  the  Sixth ;  Thomas  Robin- 
son to  the  Seventh;  Bruner  to  the  Third;  S.  Bayard 
to  the  Eighth  ;  Caleb  North  to  the  Eleventh.  Majors  : 
Nichol  to  the  Ninth ;  Church  to  the  Fourth ;  Hulings 
to  the  Third  ;  James  Moore  to  the  Seventh  ;  Vernon 
to  the  Eighth ;  Taylor  to  the  Fifth ;  Tolbert  to  the 
Sixth  ;  Ryan  to  the  Tenth. 

After  the  battle  of  Germantown  the  first  subject 
which  claimed  the  attention  of  the  commander-in-chief 
was  the  strengthening  of  the  posts  at  Billingsport  on 
the  Jersey  side  of  the  Delaware,  and  of  Forts  Mifflin 
and  Red  Bank  on  opposite  shores  of  the  river  just 
above.  The  fortifications  at  these  places,  with  the 
chevaux-de-frise  stretched  across  the  river  which  they 
protected,  closed,  as  we  have  said,  the  access  of  the 
English  fleet  to  the  city.  With  the  army  at  Philadel- 
phia and  the  fleet  below  constantly  striving  to  furnish 
supplies  by  the  only  route  by  which  they  could  reach 
it  in  sufficient  quantities,  it  will  be  at  once  seen  that 
it  was  of  the  utmost  importance  that  the  Americans 
should  maintain  these  obstacles  to  a  communication 
between  the  fleet  and  the  army.  Washington  at  that 
time  did  not  consider  his  force  sufficiently  strong  to 
detach  any  portion  of  it  to  relieve  the  garrisons  at 
these  posts,  or  to  draw  off  the  attention  of  the  enemy 
by  a  counter-movement.  Left  to  themselves,  therefore, 
the  garrisons,  with  the  assistance  of  Commodore  Hazle- 
wood  of  the  Pennsylvania  Navy,  defended  these  posts 
during  more  than  six  weeks  with  a  bravery  as  heroic 
as  that  displayed  at  any  time  during  the  war.  Billings- 
port, the  lowest  post,  was  abandoned  in  order  to  con- 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  103 

centrate  the  whole  disposable  force  at  Red  Bank  (Fort 
Mercer)  and  at  Mud  Island  (Fort  Mifflin).  Colonel 
Greene  was  in  command  of  the  garrison  of  the  former, 
composed  at  this  time  of  about  four  hundred  troops. 
On  the  2 2d  of  October  a  force  of  Hessians  twelve 
hundred  strong  was  sent  against  it,  under  the  command 
of  Count  Donop.  Their  attack,  which  was  very  ener- 
getic, was  repulsed  with  a  loss  of  about  four  hundred 
men,  and  Count  Donop  was  mortally  wounded.  At 
the  same  time  an  effort  was  made  to  attack  Fort  Mifflin, 
on  the  opposite  shore,  by  ships  of  war,  but  two  of  the 
vessels,  the  Augusta  and  the  Merlin,  ran  aground  and 
were  burned  by  the  Americans.  This  success  revived 
greatly  the  hopes  of  the  Americans  of  preventing  the 
fleet  from  reaching  the  city,  and  strengthened  their 
determination  to  maintain  the  possession  of  these  forts. 
Howe  was  engaged  in  constructing  redoubts  and  bat- 
teries on  Province  Island,  on  the  west  side  of  the  Dela- 
ware, separated  from  Fort  Mifflin  by  a  strait  about  five 
hundred  yards  wide,  to  enable  him  to  get  possession  of 
these  forts.  To  relieve  Fort  Mifflin  it  was  necessary 
to  capture  these  batteries  on  Province  Island.  To 
effect  this  object  would  have  required,  in  the  opinion 
of  Washington  and  many  of  his  generals,  a  greater 
force  than  he  had  at  his  disposal,  and  the  hope  was 
that  the  fort  would  hold  out  until  the  expected  rein- 
forcements from  the  northward  should  arrive.  Such 
was  the  condition  of  things  when  General  Wayne  pro- 
posed to  the  commander-in-chief  that  he  should  lead  an 
expedition  to  capture  the  batteries  on  Province  Island 
by  a  coup-de-main.  General  Washington  declined  to 
approve  the  plan,  and  on  the   10th  of  November  a 


io4  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

combined  attack  by  the  English  naval  forces  and  the 
land  batteries  on  Province  Island  was  made  on  the 
fort,  so  terrible  in  its  character,  and  made  with  so  over- 
whelming a  force,  that  the  garrison,  which  had  fought 
with  heroic  bravery,  was  obliged  to  evacuate  the  ruins. 
That  General  Wayne  urged  an  expedition  for  the  relief 
of  the  fort,  which  he  was  to  lead,  is  not  generally  known, 
and,  as  far  as  I  am  aware,  no  statement  of  his  plans 
has  ever  been  made  in  print.  General  Washington's 
letter  to  the  President  of  Congress,  in  which  he  ex- 
plains why  the  attempt  was  not  made,  is  better  known. 
This  letter,  and  that  of  General  Wayne  to  Mr.  Peters 
concerning  his  projected  share  in  the  expedition,  are 
given  here  in  order  that  the  reader  may  compare  them. 
It  is  not  easy  to  reconcile  their  statements. 

General  Washington  to  the  President  of  Congress,  ifth  November, 

1777- 
Sir, — I  am  sorry  to  inform  you  that  Fort  Mifflin  was  evacuated 
the  night  before  last  after  a  defence  which  does  credit  to  the  Amer- 
ican army  and  will  ever  reflect  the  highest  honor  upon  the  officers 
and  men  of  the  garrison. 

The  only  remaining  and  practicable  mode  of  giving  relief  to 
the  Fort  was  by  dislodging  the  enemy  from  Province  Island,  from 
whence  they  kept  up  an  incessant  fire.  But  this  from  the  situation 
of  the  ground  was  not  to  be  attempted  with  any  degree  of  safety  to 
the  attacking  party  unless  the  whole,  or  a  considerable  part  of  the 
army  should  be  removed  to  the  west  side  of  the  Schuylkill  to  sup- 
port and  cover  it. 

After  explaining  that  a  force  marching  down  the  road 
from  the  Blue  Bell  at  Darby  to  Province  Island  would 
have  been  in  imminent  danger  of  being  cut  off  by  the 
enemy's  force  crossing  the  Schuylkill  at  Market  Street 


BRANDYWJNE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  105 

ferry  and  attacking  the  rear  of  the  American  detach- 
ment, he  adds, — 

It  was  therefore  determined  a  few  days  ago  to  wait  the  arrival 
of  the  reinforcements  from  the  Northward  before  any  alteration 
could  safely  be  made  in  the  disposition  of  the  Army  ;  and  I  was  not 
without  hopes  that  the  fort  would  have  held  out  till  that  time. 

General  Wayne  to  Mr.  Peters,  Secretary  of  War. 

Camp  White  Marsh  18th  Nov.  1777 

Dear  Sir, — Before  this  reaches  you  the  loss  of  Fort  Mifflin  has 
been  Announced — that  Garrison  has  done  its  duty — would  to  God 
that  it  had  been  equally  done  in  an  Other  Quarter  ! 

Six  weeks  Investiture  and  no  Attempt  to  raise  the  siege  of  that 
fort — will  scarcely  be  Credited  at  an  Other  day — you'l  ask  what  was 
the  cause  of  this  Supineness — an  over  stretched  caution,  which  is 
oftentimes  attended  with  as  fatal  Consequences,  as  too  much  rash- 
ness, the  present,  as  well  as  some  past  events,  fully  evinces  the  truth 
of  this  position. 

Whenever  that  Subject  was  mentioned,  new  Difficulties  were  al- 
ways raised  sufficient  to  prevent  any  measures  being  taken  for  that 
purpose — until  His  Excellency,  seeing  the  Absolute  necessity  of 
making  every  possible  effort  to  effect  so  Desirable  an  Object,  Or- 
dered some  Gent'n  in  whom  he  could  Confide  to  Reconnoitre  the 
Ground  in  the  Vicinity  of  Province  Island,  the  position  of  the 
Enemies  works  and  the  Avenues  leading  to  them — on  their  Return 
a  Council  was  held — the  practicability  as  well  as  the  Immediate 
Necessity  of  raising  the  Siege  was  urged  in  the  most  clear  and 
pointed  terms — the  measure  was  again  over  ruled — but  His  Excel- 
lency had  Determined  to  act  the  General — the  Army  was  to  have 
passed  the  Schuylkill  and  taken  post  near  the  middle  ferry  [Market 
Street] — whilst  my  Division  with  Morgan's  Corps,  were  to  proceed 
to  Province  Island,  and  there  Storm  the  Enemies  lines,  spike  their 
Cannon,  and  Ruin  their  works — 

There  was  some  Difficulty,  as  well  as  Danger  in  the  Attempt — but 
the  success  depended  more  on  the  fortitude  of  the  Troops,  and  the 
Vigor  with  which  the  Attack  was  made — than  upon  Numbers — His 


io6  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 


Excellency  had  charged  me  with  the  Conduct  and  execution  of  this 
business — I  knew  my  Troops  &  gladly  Embraced  the  Command, 
but  the  Evacuation  of  that  Important  fortress,  the  Evening  preceed- 
ing  the  day  on  which  the  Storm  was  to  have  taken  place,  frustrated 
an  Expedition  which  Afforded  the  most  flattering  prospect  of  once 
more  possessing  Phil'a  and  Obliging  the  Enemy  to  seek  for  Quarters 
in  a  less  Hostile  place — These  hopes  are  now  Vanished —  I  fear  I 
Augured  but  too  true  when  I  Informed  you  of  the  probable  fate  of 
our  fleet  and  Works  on  the  River — nothing  will  prevent  its  taking 
place  but  his  Excellency  sometimes  act'g  without  his  Council. 

It  was  a  saying  of  one  of  the  first  of  Generals,  that  whenever  he 
Intended  to  do  [blot]  he  always  called  a  Council  of  War — I  believe 
it  was  the  surest  way  to  do  nothing — yet  I  would  not  be  understood 
to  lay  Councils  Entirely  aside — Altho'  I  am  well  Convinced  that  the 
doubts  raised,  and  the  Delays  Occasion'd  by  these  Councils,  Often 
prevent  a  General  from  taking  the  Advantage  of  the  Most  favour- 
able Circumstances,  and  from  Striking  the  most  Capital  Strokes — 
There  has  been  more  than  one  Instance  of  the  truth  of  this  Obser- 
vation during  this  Campaign. 

We  have  yet  a  Capital  game  to  play — and  if  we  are  not  too  fond 
of  keeping  the  Cards  in  our  hands  we  may  make  the  Odd  trick — but 
if  we  should  still  Remain  Inactive — a  few  days  will  force  us  from 
the  field — Our  poor  naked  soldiers,  begin  to  Complain  of  the  Cold 
and  look  up  to  us  for  Relief — I  never  pass  along  the  line,  but  Ob- 
jects strike  my  eye,  which  give  a  painful  and  Melancholy  Sensa- 
tion, that  almost  Induces  me  to  wish  I  was  past  either  seeing  or 
hearing — Indeed  Sir,  Nothing  but  the  doubtful  state  we  are  in  should 
keep  me  a  Single  Moment  in  the  Service  that  has  become  almost 
Intolerable. 

I  herewith  send  you  the  proceedings  of  a  Gen'l  Court  Martial 
held  on  me  the  30th  Ultimo.  I  wish  to  Convince  my  friends  and  the 
publick  that  I  have  done  my  Duty — and  that  I  may  Quit  the  Service 
with  as  much  Credit  as  I  entered  into  it 

I  am  Sir  Your  Most  Ob't  and  very 
Hum'l  Ser't 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

[Rich'd  Peters,  Esqr., 
Sec'y  of  War.] 


BRANDYW1NE,   GERMANTGWN,  ETC.  107 


The  three  subjects  which  engaged  General  Wayne's 
most  anxious  attention  during  the  autumn  of  1777  and 
the  winter  encampment  of  the  army  at  Valley  Forge 
Were — 1st,  the  expediency  and  necessity  of  carrying  on 
an  active  campaign ;  2d,  measures  for  providing  the 
men  under  his  command  with  suitable  clothing  and 
food  during  the  winter;  3d,  the  necessity  of  filling  up 
the  ranks  of  his  regiments,  depleted  by  sickness,  de- 
sertion, and  the  expiration  of  the  term  of  the  men's 
enlistment. 

In  his  efforts  to  bring  about  an  active  campaign, 
Wayne  exhibited  some  of  his  most  characteristic  quali- 
ties. Four  different  times  between  the  middle  of  Oc- 
tober and  the  close  of  the  year  1777,  while  the  army 
lay  encamped  at  White  Marsh  and  Valley  Forge,  he 
urged  upon  the  commander-in-chief  the  expediency  of 
taking  the  field.  The  letters  in  which  he  outlined  his 
plans  and  advocated  their  adoption  are  found  among 
his  correspondence.  They  prove  even  to  those  not 
familiar  with  military  science  and  strategy  how  earnest 
was  his  conviction  that  their  adoption  must  aid  the 
American  cause.  The  first  of  these  letters,  that  to 
Mr.  Secretary  Peters,  dated  the  18th  of  November,  has 
been  already  given,  and  it  is  rather  an  expression  of  his 
opinion  concerning  the  timidity  and  stupidity  of  those 
of  his  fellow-officers  who  advocated  a  do-nothing  policy, 
and  of  patriotic  grief  at  the  results  which  had  followed 
the  adoption  of  such  a  system,  than  a  suggestion  of 
new  enterprises.  The  other  three  letters  are  addressed 
to  the  commander-in-chief.  In  the  first,  dated  Octo- 
ber 27,  in  answer  to  the  general's  question  whether 
it  would  be  prudent  in  our  present  circumstances  to 


108  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

attempt  to  drive  the  enemy  from  their  works  (before  the 
surrender  of  Forts  Mifflin  and  Mercer),  Wayne  urges, 
as  will  be  seen  from  the  letter  itself,  the  adoption  of  an 
elaborate  plan  of  attack,  by  which  the  enemy  could  be 
dislodged,  and  he  insists  upon  the  absolute  necessity 
at  any  rate  of  making  the  effort.  In  the  second,  dated 
25th  of  November,  likewise  in  reply  to  a  letter  from 
General  Washington  consulting  him  as  to  the  course 
he  should  pursue,  he  urges  most  earnestly  that  "your 
Excellency  should  march  to-morrow  morning,"  and  he 
fortifies  his  appeal  as  to  the  immediate  necessity  of 
giving  battle  by  expressing  "  solemnly  and  clearly"  his 
"opinion  that  the  credit  of  the  army,  the  safety  of 
the  country,  the  honor  of  the  American  arms,  the  ap- 
proach of  winter  that  must  in  a  few  days  force  you 
from  the  field,  and,  above  all,  the  depreciation  of  the 
currency,  point  out  the  immediate  necessity  of  giving 
the  enemy  battle."  It  should  not  be  forgotten  that 
this  letter  was  written  at  the  beginning  of  the  memora- 
ble winter  of  1777-78,  memorable  for  the  agony  and 
suffering  of  ill-fed  and  almost  naked  soldiers  subject  to 
the  hardships  and  exposure  (easily  preventable)  which 
they  were  called  upon  to  undergo  during  their  encamp- 
ment at  Valley  Forge.  In  the  third,  dated  December  4, 
also  addressed  to  General  Washington,  he  urges — most 
sensibly,  as  it  seems  to  us — a  modified  plan  of  a  winter 
campaign.  These  letters  are  very  characteristic.  They 
are  filled  with  a  certain  noble  enthusiasm  and  patriotic 
ardor  which  evidently  regard  no  interests  worth  pur- 
suing save  those  of  the  writer's  country,  then  in  the 
supremest  hour  of  her  distress.  They  should  be  care- 
fully read,  bearing  in  mind  that  every  word  he  uses  was 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,   ETC.  109 

carefully  weighed,  and  that  he  was  not  only  willing  but 
anxious  to  do  his  share  in  the  hazardous  operations  he 
recommended. 

General  Wayne  to  General  Washington. 

Oct  27,  1777 

Sir, — The  first  Question  you  offer  is  "  Whether  it  will  be  prudent 
in  our  present  circumstances  &  Strength  to  Attempt  (by  a  General 
attack)  to  Dislodge  the  enemy,  and  if  it  is,  and  we  unsuccessful, 
where  shall  we  Retreat  to" —  I  am  not  perfectly  acquainted  with  our 
Circumstances  or  Strength — I  have  some  knowledge  of  it  as  well  as 
that  of  the  Enemy's  which  nearly  meets  the  Idea  I  always  enter- 
tained of  it — however  I  might  have  differed  with  Other  Gentlemen 
on  the  Occasion — when  I  gave  my  Opinion  for  the  Attack  at  Ger- 
mantown  I  did  not  Diminish  their  Numbers —  In  point  of  Position 
they  had  then  much  the  Advantage  of  us — the  Ground  they  Occu- 
pied was  Strong — many  Roads  led  immediately  for  our  flanks —  In 
their  present  position — it  may  be  said  their  flanks  are  covered — as 
to  ours  when  once  we  move  to  the  Attack — we  shall  be  under  no 
Apprehension  of  either  being  outflanked  or  Enclosed  in  the  Rear — 
In  case  of  a  misfortune  we  have  every  Road  and  the  Whole  Country 
open  to  favor  our  Retreat — the  shipping  at  the  same  time  may  move 
up  to  favour  our  Attack  or  Retreat — the  Militia  from  the  Other  Side 
of  Schuylkill  with  a  few  field  pieces  will  not  only  draw  the  Attention 
of  the  Enemy  to  them  but  will  Annoy  and  Enfilade  them  This 
will  also  facilitate  the  Victory  or  Cover  the  Retreat —  It  may  be 
necessary  to  Offer  some  Reasons  for  giving  this  advice — they  are 
these  Viz — if  the  Enemy  are  not  Immediately  Dislodged — all  our 
Defenses  and  Shipping  on  the  River  will  Inevitably  fall  into  their 
hands — they  will  thereby  secure  to  themselves  Comfortable  Winter 
Quarters,  the  Inclemency  of  the  Weather  will  soon  force  your  Army 
from  the  field — if  you  should  Attempt  to  keep  it  you  will  lose  more 
men  by  sickness  Desertion  and  other  Concomitant  evils  Incident  to 
a  Naked  Discontented  Army — than  you  would  in  the  Severest  Action 
— add  to  this  the  small  prospect  of  Recruiting  or  Strengthening 
your  Force  under  the  present  Militia  acts — especially  as  your  Officers 
will  necessarily  be  Engaged  in  the  field —  For  my  own  part  I  am 
well  Convinced  that  on  the  Activity  and  Prowess  of  our  present 


no  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

Troops  much  Depends — which  Induces  me  to  wish  for  an  Immediate 
Attack — that  if  unsuccessful  we  may  Retire  to  some  Other  place 
best  Suited  to  Receive  us  and  where  we  may  Clothe  and  Refresh  our 
Troops,  and  Employ  our  Officers  on  the  Recruiting  Service — to 
attempt  to  prevent  the  Enemy  from  Drawing  Supplies  when  they 
are  once  in  Possession  of  the  River  will  Answer  no  Other  end  than 
to  fatigue  and  Destroy  our  own  Soldiers — 

Anthony  Wayne. 

General  Wayne  to  General  Washington. 

Camp  at  White  Marsh  25th  Nov.  1777 

Sir, — After  the  most  Dispassionate  &  Deliberate  Consideration 
of  the  question  your  Excellency  was  Pleased  to  put  to  the  Council 
of  Gen'l  Officers  last  evening — I  am  Solemnly  and  Clearly  of  Opin- 
ion ;  that  the  Credit  of  the  Army  under  your  Command — the  Safety 
of  the  Country — the  Honor  of  the  American  Arms — the  Approach 
of  Winter  that  must  in  a  few  days  force  you  from  the  field,  and 
above  all  the  Depreciation  of  the  Currency  of  these  States,  point  out 
the  Immediate  Necessity  of  giving  the  Enemy  Battle — 

Could  they  possibly  be  drawn  from  their  lines  it  is  a  Measure 
devoutly  to  be  wished — but  if  that  can  not  be  Affected  It  is  my 
Opinion  that  your  Excellency  should  march  tomorrow  morning  and 
take  post  with  this  Army  at  the  Upper  end  of  Germantown,  and 
from  thence  Immediately  detach  a  Working  party  to  throw  up  some 
Redoubts  under  the  Direction  of  your  Engineers, — this  Intelligence 
will  reach  the  Enemy — they  will  Conclude  that  you  intend  to  make 
good  your  Winter  Quarters  there — and  however  Desirous  they  may 
be  to  Dislodge  you — they  Can't  attempt  it  until  they  withdraw  their 
Troops  from  the  Jerseys — this  can  not  be  done  in  the  course  of  a 
night — 

By  this  manoeuvre  you  will  be  within  striking  distance,  the  Enemy 
will  be  Deceived  by  your  Working  party  and  lulled  into  Security — 
your  Troops  will  be  fresh  and  ready  to  move  that  Night  so  as  to 
Arrive  at  the  Enemy's  lines  before  day  light  on  this  day  morning 
— agreeable  to  the  proposed  plan  of  Attack — the  outlines  of  which 
are  good  and  may  be  Improved  to  Advantage ;  and  Crowned  with 
Success — 

It   has   been  Objected  by  some  Gentlemen   that  the  Attack  is 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  in 

hazardous — that  if  we  prevail  it  will  be  Attended  with  great  loss — 
I  agree  with  the  Gentlemen  in  their  position. 

But  however  hazardous  the  Attempt  and  Altho'  some  loss  is  Certain 
— yet  it  is  my  Opinion  that  you  will  not  be  in  a  Worse  Situation — 
nor  your  Arms  in  less  Credit  if  you  should  meet  with  a  Misfortune 
than  if  you  were  to  Remain  Inactive. 

The  eyes  of  all  the  World  are  fixed  on  you — the  Junction  of  the 
Northern  Army  gives  the  Country  and  Congress  some  expectations 
that  Vigorous  efforts  will  be  made  to  Dislodge  the  Enemy — and 
Oblige  them  to  seek  for  Winter  Quarters  in  a  less  hostile  place  than 
Phil'a. 

It's  not  in  our  power  to  Command  Success — but  it  is  in  our  power 
to  produce  a  Conviction  to  the  World  that  we  deserve  it — 
Interim  I  am  your  Excellency's  most 

Ob't  Hum'l  Ser't 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

General  Washington  to  General  Wayne. 

Sir, — I  wish  to  recall  your  attention  to  the  important  matter 
recommended  to  your  Consideration  some  time  ago — Namely  the 
Adviseability  of  a  Winter  Campaign,  &  practicability  of  an  Attempt 
upon  Philad'a  with  the  Aid  of  a  Considerable  body  of  Militia  to  be 
Assembled  at  an  appointed  time  &  place.  Particular  reasons  urge 
me  to  request  your  Sentiments  on  this  matter  by  the  morning,  &  I 
shall  expect  to  receive  them  accordingly  in  writing  by  that  time. 

I  am  Sir 

Your  mo  Obed't  Servant 

G'e  Washington. 
Dec'r  3d  1777 
[Brig'r  Gen'l  Wayne. 
Camp.] 

General  Wayne  to  General  Washington. 

Camp  4th  Dec'r  1777 

Sir, — I  am  not  for  a  Winters  Campaign  in  the  Open  field — the 

Distressed  and  Naked  Situation  of  your  Troops  will  not  Admit  of  it. 

But  if  taking  post  at  Wilmington  &  the  Villages  in  its  Vicinity — 

or  Hutting  at  the  Distance  of  about  twenty  Miles  West  of  Phil'a  by 


ii2  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

way  of  Quarters  (which  will  not  only  support  the  Honor  &  Repu- 
tation of  your  Army  in  the  eyes  of  the  Enemy  and  the  States  of 
Europe — but  will  give  Confidence  to  America — and  Cover  this 
Country  against  the  Horrid  rapine  and  Devastation  of  a  Wanton 
Enemy,)  be  Deemed  making  a  Winters  Campaign — I  am  then  for  it 
upon  every  principle  of  Honor — policy  and  justice. 

The  probability  of  a  Successful  Attack  upon  Phil'a  during  the 
Winter  depends  so  much  on  time,  Season  &  a  Variety  of  Other  Cir- 
cumstances— that  the  Calling  out  the  Militia  in  General  may  not  be 
Strictly  Warrantable. 

Notwithstanding  I  wish  to  see  a  proper  number  Always  hanging 
on  the  Skirts  of  the  Enemy,  sufficient  to  prevent  any  small  parties 
from  Committing  Depredations — to  save  the  Continental  Troops 
from  that  fatigue — and  should  the  Enemy  move  out  in  force — to 
give  timely  Notice  thereof  and  to  Assist  in  their  Repulse — 
I  am  your  Excellency's  Most  Ob't 

and  very  Hum'l  Ser't 

Ant'y  Wayne  B.G. 

[Genl.  Washington.] 

Wayne  felt  most  deeply  the  loss  of  the  forts  on  the 
Delaware.  He  writes  to  Gates  very  much  in  the  same 
strain  as  he  had  done  to  Peters.1  "  We  have  lost  Fort 
Mifflin,"  he  says,  "after  an  investment  of  six  weeks 
without  any  attempt  to  raise  the  siege,  the  consequence 
of  which  will  be  the  loss  of  all  our  other  works  and 
shipping  on  the  river.  ...  I  have  thus  given  you  a 
true  picture  of  our  present  situation,  over  which  I 
wish  to  draw  a  veil  until  our  arms  procure  one  more 
lovely,  which  I  don't  despair  of,  if  our  worthy  General 
will  but  follow  his  own  good  judgment  without  listen- 
ing too  much  to  some  counsel." 

Of  the  seventeen  general  officers  of  the  army  whom 
Washington  was  in  the  habit  of  consulting  before  he 

1  Reed's  Reed,  342. 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  113 

took  any  important  step,  Wayne  was  always  one  of 
that  gallant  minority  whose  "voice  was  still  for  war." 
His  notion  of  the  duty  of  a  soldier  was  that  while  he 
should  not  be  governed  by  a  rash  foolhardiness,  which 
as  often  leads  to  disaster  as  to  victory,  he  should  never- 
theless maintain  a  steady,  bold  self-confidence,  which 
recognizes  that  there  is  no  successful  war  unless  pro- 
digious risks  are  taken.  His  temperament  was  not 
one  which  could  feel  any  sympathy  with  the  doubts 
and  misgivings  of  a  council  of  war  such  as  Wash- 
ington could  convene,  especially  as  he  knew  that  its 
opinion  was  founded  upon  a  contempt  for  the  military 
qualities  of  the  American  soldier  as  compared  with 
those  which  were  supposed  to  characterize  his  adver- 
sary. He  knew  that  there  was  something  of  the  same 
feeling  common  among  certain  generals  that  prevailed 
among  the  officers  of  the  Royal  army  when  they  were 
acting  with  the  Provincial  troops  before  the  Revolution. 
He  knew  that  victory  was  impossible  while  such  a  feel- 
ing prevailed,  and  therefore  by  temperament,  as  well  as 
a  matter  of  calculation,  he  always  set  an  example  which 
inspired  his  men  with  self-confidence,  the  principal  ele- 
ment in  which  he  felt  they  were  deficient.  Hence  he 
not  only  advocated  measures  which  sometimes  seemed 
to  his  fellow-officers  desperate  and  rash,  but  he  was 
always  the  leader  in  their  execution.  And  it  is  curious  to 
observe  that  from  enterprises  of  this  description,  which 
his  own  brave  heart  told  him  were  feasible,  depending, 
as  he  said,  "  not  on  the  numbers,  but  the  vigor  of  the 
men  engaged,"  such  as  the  storming  of  Stony  Point, 
or  the  change  of  the  fortunes  of  the  day  at  Monmouth 
(where  he  was  obliged  to  withstand  at  the  same  moment 

9 


ii4  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

the  treason  of  Lee  and  the  charge  of  the  English  gren- 
adiers), or  the  extraordinary  presence  of  mind  and 
courage  which  he  exhibited  at  Green  Spring,  although 
on  all  of  these  occasions  those  around  him  felt  that  he 
was  fighting  his  last  battle,  he  emerged,  not  unhurt,  but 
triumphant.  However  wearied  and  disgusted  he  was 
with  what  he  regarded  as  the  timidity  and  incapacity  of 
many  of  the  generals,  nothing  was  more  striking  than 
his  unwavering  loyalty  to  his  venerated  chief  under  all 
his  trials.  Washington's  indecision,  at  times,  Wayne 
ascribed  wholly  to  his  own  modesty,  and  to  his  readiness 
to  yield  to  inferior  men  who  had  had  more  military  ex- 
perience than  himself, — notably  Lee  and  Gates.  No 
one  was  more  shocked  than  he  by  the  intrigues  of  the 
Conway  Cabal,  and  no  one  deserved  as  no  one  gained 
more  fully  during  and  after  the  war  the  unlimited  con- 
fidence of  Washington. 

The  army  having  gone  into  winter  quarters  at  Valley 
Forge,  Wayne  was  soon  obliged  to  turn  his  attention 
to  a  very  essential  part  of  a  general's  duty, — that  of 
providing  suitable  clothing  for  his  men,  and  recruiting 
their  numbers  diminished  by  sickness  and  desertion. 
His  correspondence  during  the  terrible  winter  of  1 777— 
78,  showing  how  constant  were  his  efforts  to  compass 
these  two  objects,  is  most  interesting  and  instructive 
as  confirming  the  traditions  which  have  been  handed 
down  to  us  of  the  suffering  at  Valley  Forge,  and  show- 
ing that  the  inefficiency  of  the  service  was  due  in  a  great 
measure  to  a  lack  of  administrative  capacity  (at  least 
as  far  as  the  Pennsylvania  troops  were  concerned)  on 
the  part  of  the  State  authorities.  One  loses  patience 
as  he  reads  Wayne's  complaints  of  the  neglect  of  the 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  115 

commonest  wants  of  the  soldier,  and  the  ridiculous 
excuses  that  were  made  for  not  supplying  them.  It  is, 
indeed,  humiliating  to  read  in  the  Wayne  correspond- 
ence the  story  of  this  great  neglect, — to  discover,  for 
instance,  that  four  months  after  the  battle  of  Brandy- 
wine  the  officers  who  had  lost  all  their  baggage  in  that 
engagement  had  not  yet  been  supplied  with  new  gar- 
ments ;  that  such  were  the  destitution  and  nakedness  of 
the  troops  at  Valley  Forge  that  Wayne  himself  purchased 
the  cloth  for  the  articles  his  men  most  needed,  hoping — 
as  it  turned  out,  in  vain — to  have  the  garments  made 
up  in  the  camp  ;  that  the  State  Clothier-General  refused 
to  issue  the  cloth  which  he  had  in  store,  through  some 
absurd  rule  in  his  opinion  justifying  his  action.  Thus, 
when  the  proper  officer  called  for  shoes  repeatedly, 
they  were  not  issued  because  no  order  of  council  had 
been  voted  which  directed  them  to  be  delivered.  On 
the  1 2th  of  March  Wayne  sends  Colonel  Bayard  to  Lan- 
caster to  procure  arms  and  clothing,  but  the  result  is 
broken  promises  only.  In  despair  he  turns  to  the 
President  of  the  Council,  or  Governor,  and  tells  him  of 
the  need  of  supplies  and  of  recruits  for  the  Pennsyl- 
vania line.  He  is  told  in  reply  that  he  should  send  out 
more  recruiting  officers,  and  that  as  to  the  non-receipt 
of  the  clothing,  the  delay  is  caused  by  a  want  of  buttons? 
In  order  that  a  true  view  of  the  condition  of  the 

1  It  is  usual  to  attribute  the  chaotic  condition  of  the  public  service, 
so  far  at  least  as  regards  the  supply  of  the  needs  of  the  Pennsylvania 
soldiers,  to  factional  strife  in  the  Assembly.  It  is  more  probable 
that  it  was  due  to  the  inexperience,  the  incapacity,  and  possibly  in 
some  cases  the  corruption,  of  the  men  whom  the  new  government 
had  brought  into  power. 


n6  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE, 

army  at  Valley  Forge  at  that  time,  and  of  the  em- 
barrassments and  difficulties  which  surrounded  General 
Wayne  in  his  efforts  to  procure  clothing  and  recruits, 
may  be  obtained,  the  following  letters  from  the  cor- 
respondence are  given  : 

General  Wayne  to  Mr.  Peters ;  Secretary  of  War. 

Lancaster  26th  Jan'y  1778. 

Dear  Sir, — Col.  Miller  in  Virtue  of  an  Appointment  from  me 
under  the  authority  of  the  Board  of  War  purchased  a  Quantity 
of  Cloth  in  York  Town  for  the  use  of  the  Officers  &  Soldiers  of 
this  State, — the  Officers  having  lost  their  Baggage  Immediately  after 
the  Battle  of  Brandywine  are  at  present  Almost  Destitute  of  Clothing, 
part  of  the  Cloth,  which  the  Colonel  has  purchased  was  for  the  use 
of  those  Officers,  and  yet  remains  in  the  hands  of  the  Merchants 
who  do  not  wish  to  deliver  it  until  they  know  where  to  Receive  their 
pay— 

The  Clothier  General  has  peremptorily  refused  paying  Col.  Miller's 
Orders  in  favour  of  those  Merchants — so  that  unless  the  Board  will 
please  to  give  Col.  Miller  Credit  for  a  Sum  of  Money  for  the  pur- 
pose of  paying  for  them  &  to  be  Accountable  for  the  same  to  Col. 
Johnston  the  Clothier  Gen'l  of  this  State  the  Officers  must  suffer  or 
Quit  the  Service — 

I  have  this  moment  rec'd  the  Enclosed.  A  number  of  Officers  from 
the  Respective  Regt's  of  this  State  are  now  here  with  the  Measures 
to  make  the  Officers  Clothing  by  but  the  Cloth  to  make  them  is  in 
York  under  the  Circumstances  I  have  mentioned — 

I  must  therefor  Request  you  to  lay  the  matter  before  the  Board, 
and  fall  upon  some  Other  mode  than  Orders  on  the  Clothier  Gen'l 
as  directed  by  the  Within  Copy — for  those  who  have  ever  Rec'd  an 
Order  in  that  way  will  never  be  Induced  to  part  with  their  goods  on 
the  same  ground  in  future — 

I  am  too  much  Interested  in  the  freedom  and  happiness  of  America 
to  withdraw  from  the  Army  at  this  Crisis  I  believe  I  have  a  much 
greater  share  of  Care  and  Difficulty  than  Ought  to  come  to  the  pro- 
portion of  one  Officer —  Unfortunately  there  is  no  Other  Gen'l  in 
the  Penns'a  line,  belonging  to  this  Army —     We  Derive  but  little 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  117 

Assistance  from  the  Civil  Authority,  and  every  let  and  hindrance  in 
the  power  of  the  Clothier  General  seems  to  be  thrown  in  the  way 
— so  that  I  am  almost  tempted  to — 

but  I  will,  at  all  events,  provide  for  my  poor  fellows  before  I  consult 
my  own  ease  &  happiness 

Interim  I  am  your  Most  Ob't 

Hum'l  Ser't 

Ant'y  Wayne. 
[Rich'd  Peters  Esqr.] 

General  Wayne  to  the  Clothier  General. 

Mount  Joy  6th  Feb'y  1778 
Dear  Sir, — Col  Chambers  will  wait  on  you  with  a  Return  of 
Clothing,  for  the  Serjants  Drums  &  fifes  of  my  Division  I  wish  to 
see  them  make  a  Decent  Appearance  on  the  parade,  at  present  they 
are  Almost  Naked —  if  you  cant  Conveniently  have  the  Uniforms 
made  up  at  Lancaster — will  you  be  so  kind  as  to  Order  them  to  be 
cut  out  and  Delivered  to  Col  Hartley — together  with  the  Materials 
for  making  them  up — which  I  can  have  done  in  Camp —  the  Col  will 
pass  his  Rect.  for  the  Whole. 

I  am  Sir  your  Most  Ob't  Hum'l  Ser't 

Ant'y  Wayne. 
[James  Mease  Esqr 
Clothier  General] 

Commissary  Lang  to  General  Wayne. 

Lancaster  Feby  7th  1778 
Hon'd  Sir, — You  can  not  Conceive  how  Uneasy  I  am  from  want 
of  Instructions  from  Council  concerning  the  Sending  necessaries 
to  Camp  for  the  troops  You  can  now  be  furnished  with  300  pair  of 
shoes  more  but  they  (the  Council)  have  not  fixed  the  issueing  time 
as  yet.  Some  shirts  &  stockings  &  Good  Breeches  are  in  my  posses- 
sion, on  which  account  I  only  await  your  Orders  &  their  Leave. 
Application  has  been  made  by  the  other  five  Reg'ts  of  the  state  who 
have  no  Shoes  as  yet  &  represent  themselves  in  Very  great  Want. 
Possibly  this  may  soon  Lessen  the  number  now  in  my  hands.     Pray 


n8  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

send  a  receipt  for  the  301  pairs  you  got  of  Mr  Henry  along  with 
your  first  order  &  oblige  Sir  your 

Most  Obedient  Ser't 

Ja's  Lang 
[The  Hon'bl  Anthony  Wayne,  Esq'r, 
Brigad'r  Gen'll  at  Camp, 
Near  Valley  Forge.] 

General  Wayne  to  Mr.  Peters,  Secretary  of  War. 

Mount  Joy  8th  Feby  1778 

Dear  Sir, — On  my  Arrival  in  Camp  I  found  the  Division  in  a 
much  worse  Condition  for  the  Want  of  Clothing  and  every  Other 
matter  than  I  expected —  I  am  endeavouring  to  Remedy  the  De- 
fects &  hope  soon  to  Restore  Order,  Introduce  Discipline  and  Con- 
tent— all  which  was  much  Wanting  and  desertion  prevailing  fast — 
I  flatter  myself  that  I  have  so  much  the  Esteem  and  Confidence  of 
my  Troops — that  Desertion  will  no  longer  take  place —  I  am  happy 
to  Inform  you  that  there  is  not  a  single  Instance  since  my  Return — 

I  find  the  Enclosed  Deficiency  in  Bayonets  which  I  wish  an  Order 
for  from  the  Board  of  War  on  Mr.  William  Henry  at  Lancaster — 
with  directions  to  make  them  Eighteen  Inches  long  in  the  blade 
together  with  an  Equal  Number  of  Scabbards  and  belts — I  would 
also  wish  to  exchange  a  Number  of  Rifles  for  Muskets  and  Bayonets — 
I  don't  like  rifles — I  would  almost  as  soon  face  an  Enemy  with  a 
good  Musket  and  Bayonet  without  amunition — as  with  amunition 
without  a  Bayonet  for  altho'  there  are  not  many  Instances  of  bloody 
bayonets  yet  I  am  Confident  that  one  bayonet  keeps  off  an  Other — 
and  for  the  Want  of  which  the  Chief  of  the  Defeats  we  have  met 
with  ought  in  a  great  measure  to  be  Attributed —  the  Enemy  know- 
ing the  Defenseless  State  of  our  Riflemen  rush  on —  they  fly  mix 
with  or  pass  thro'  the  Other  Troops  and  Communicate  fears  that 
is  ever  Incident  to  a  retiring  Corps —  this  Would  not  be  the  Case 
if  the  Riflemen  had  bayonets — but  it  would  be  still  better  if  good 
muskets  and  bayonets  were  put  into  the  hands  of  good  Marksmen 
and  Rifles  entirely  laid  aside —  for  my  own  part  I  never  Wish  to 
see  one — at  least  Without  a  Bayonet —  I  don't  give  this  as  Mere 
matter  of  Opinion  or  Speculation — but  as  matter  of  fact  to  the  truth 
of  Which  I  have  more  than  Once  been  an  Unhappy  Witness —     I 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  119 

am  so  fully  Convinced  of  the  bad  policy  of  such  arms  that  no 
reasoning  will  ever  Eradicate  that  Conviction. 

I  must   therefore   Request   you   to   lay  the  Matter   before   your 
Hon'ble  board  and  procure  me  the  Order  on  Mr.  Henry 
Interim  I  am  Dr  Sir 

Your  Most  Ob't  Hum'l  Ser't 

Anth'y  Wayne 

Mr.  Peters,  Secretary  of  War,  to  General  Wayne. 

War  Office  Feby  18th  1778 
D'r  Sir, — I  received  your  Letter  on  the  Subject  of  exchanging 
the  Rifles  for  Muskets  &  procuring  a  Number  of  Bayonets  for  your 
Division —  I  communicated  the  Contents  of  it  to  the  Board  who 
are  well  convinced  of  the  Propriety  of  the  Measure  &  of  the  Justice 
of  your  Observations.  But  as  in  a  former  Instance  they  have  been 
accused  of  Partiality  by  supplying  your  Division  with  Shoes  out  of 
the  Common  Line,  they  would  wish  to  avoid  such  Imputations  in 
future —  If  you  will  procure  an  Order  from  the  General  or  Adju- 
tant General  so  as  to  make  the  thing  a  general  &  not  a  partial  Regu- 
lation the  Board  will  with  Cheerfulness  comply  with  your  Request — 
A  Board  of  Ordnance  for  the  Regulation  of  the  Department  in  the 
Field,  consisting  of  the  Commanding  Officer  of  the  Artillery,  the 
Chief  Engineer  &  eldest  Colonel  or  Commissary  of  Artillery,  is 
appointed  &  they  will  be  furnished  with  Money  to  answer  all  im- 
mediate Exigencies  in  Camp  &  it  is  hoped  as  they  are  more 
immediately  cognisant  of  the  Wants  of  the  Army  there  will  be 
less  Complaints  of  their  being  neglected  because  at  a  Distance 
from  the  Seat  of  public  Business — 

I  am  your  obed  Ser't 

Richard  Peters. 

Colonel  Wayne  to  Colonel  Bayard. 

Mount  Joy  28th  March  1778 
Sir, — You  are  to  proceed  Immediately  to  Lancaster  and  call  on 
Wm  Henry  Esq'r  there  for  the  Arms  &cs  mentioned  in  the  two 
Brigade  Returns. 

You  will  also  forward  to  Camp  all  such  Clothing  as  may  be  pro- 
vided for  the  Use  of  the  Officers  and  Soldiers  of  the  Penns'a  Line. 


120  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

I  need  not  urge  the  Immediate  necessity  of  these  Articles — your 
Own  Observations  and  knowledge  of  our  Distressed  Situation  will 
be  a  Sufficient  Inducement  for  you  to  exert  every  power  in  Dis- 
patching this  Essential  duty. 

You  will  urge  the  Immediate  furnishing  of  us  with  two  pair  Linen 
Overalls,  two  Shirts,  two  pair  Shoes — One  pair  Gaiters,  one  pair 
knee  Garters,  one  black  Stock  &  hair  Comb  for  each  man — Say  three 
Thousand  men — together  with  Infantry  Caps  and  Other  Clothing 
but  the  Overalls  Shirts  &  Gaiters  are  the  most  Essential  and  imme- 
diately Wanted — 

As  soon  as  you  can  Effect  this  Business  you  will  Return  to  Camp 
taking  care  to  forward  all  such  Recruits  belonging  to  the  Penns'a 
Line  as  may  be  in  Lancaster  first  providing  them  with  their  proper 
Uniform  Arms  &  Accoutrements 

Interim  I  am  Sir 

Your  most  Ob't 

Hum'l  Ser't 
Ant'y  Wayne  B.  G. 

N.B.  Shoes  we  are  tolerably  off  for — but  a  Store  will  not  be  amiss. 
If  you  can  be  furnished  with  Linen  thread  &  necessarys,  we  will 
have  the  Overalls  made  up  in  Camp — 

[Col.  Stephen  Bayard.] 

General  Wayne  to  President  Wharton  of  Pennsylvania. 

Mount  Joy  4th  May  1778 
Dear  Sir, — Enclosed  is  the  Return  of  the  13  Regiments  be- 
longing to  the  State  of  Penns'a — you  will  Observe  that  they  are 
very  weak — the  chief  part  of  those  Returned  Sick  at  present — is 
for  want  of  Clothing — being  too  naked  to  Appear  on  the  parade — 
our  Officers  in  Particular  are  in  a  most  wretched  Condition — I  can't 
conceive  the  Reason  why  they  are  not  supplied — I  purchased  Cloth 
&c  at  York  last  Jan'y  Sufficient  to  Clothe  great  part  of  them — but 
have  not  heard  what  has  been  done  with  it  I  know  it  must  be  Distress- 
ing to  your  Excellency  to  hear  so  many  Repetitions  of  our  wants — but 
whatever  pain  it  may  give  you — I  hourly  experience  much  more  from 
the  Complaints  and  View  of  Worthy  fellows  who  are  Conscious  of 
meriting  some  Attention  and  whose  wretched  Condition  can  not 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  121 

be  worse — they  think  any  change  must  be  for  the  better  &  too  many 
have  Risked  Desertion — the  Enclosed  Order  has  lately  put  some 
stop  to  it — and  had  we  Clothing  I  am  Confident  that  we  should  not 
have  any  more  leave  us  where  we  now  have  twenty. 

Adieu  &  believe  me  yours  Most  Sincerely 

Ant'y  Wayne. 
[Gov'r  Wharton.] 

Colonel  Bayard  to  General  Wayne. 

Lancaster  April  23d  '78 
Dear  General, — I  wrote  you  a  tew  days  ago,  but  have  not  had 
the  honor  of  an  Answer —  Mr.  Mease  came  home  yesterday,  and 
Consented  at  last  to  let  me  have  Linen  for  Twelve  hundred  Shirts, 
provided  it  could  be  made  up  here.  Mr  Howell,  Major  Werts  and 
myself  engaged  it  should  and  for  that  purpose  have  been  in  and 
thro'  every  Family  in  this  Town  in  Order  to  get  them  made  up,  and 
I  have  the  satisfaction  to  inform  you  that  they  are  to  be  ready  in 
Eight  days  from  this —  As  the  Expenses  of  staying  here  are  great, 
I  would  gladly  know  whether  I  must  remain,  and  bring  them  with 
me  or  Come  Immediately  to  Camp.  It  gives  me  pain  to  relate  to 
you  the  difficulty  of  getting  Any  thing  from  Mease.  Waiting  his 
slow  Motion,  dancing  attendance  &c  are  unsufferable,  had  I  full 
powers  it  should  be  otherwise,  but  he  Prides  himself  upon  his  being 
Confined  to  no  particular  State —  The  Guns  and  Bayonets  are  to  be 
ready  against  the  time  mentioned  above —  I  have  fitted  up  several 
soldiers  for  Our  Division —  The  Drummers  &  Fifers  you  have  re- 
ceived before  this  time —  I  am  heartily  tired  of  Lancaster  wou'd 
much  rather  be  at  Camp,  a  few  lines  from  you  on  that  head  would 
greatly  oblige 

Your  Most  Ob't  Humb  Ser't 

S.  Bayard. 
General  Ant'y  Wayne, 
at 

Camp. 

General  Wayne  to  the  Speaker  of  the  Pe?insylvania  Assembly. 

Mount  Joy  Camp  13th  May  1778 
Dear  Sir,— I  transmitted  a  Return  of  the  State  &  Numbers  of 
the  Several  Regiments  in  the  Penn'sa  Line  to  his  Excellency  the 


122  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

President — in  order  to  lay  before  the  Honorable  House  at  their 
present  sessions —  You  will  find  that  by  Death  Sickness  Desertion 
&c  &c  we  are  much  reduced — and  that  it  will  Require  great  exer- 
tions to  Complete  the  Regiments  to  the  new  arrangements — altho' 
far  short  of  the  former  Establishment — 

The  Recruiting  business  goes  on  very  slowly  owing  to  the  enor- 
mous price  given  to  Labourers  i-e-  two  Dollars  per  Diem  which, 
together  with  the  Wages  Offered  by  the  Q  M  General  to  Waggoners 
&  the  Substitute  money  given  to  Militia  (under  Colour  of  being 
Servants)  will  in  a  great  Degree  if  not  totally  prevent  us  from  Com- 
pleting our  Corps  by  any  means  short  of  a  Draft — but  how  this 
will  go  down  with  your  Constituants  is  a  Matter  that  may  Require 
some  serious  Consideration —  perhaps  fixing  a  Certain  Quota  for 
each  Battalion  to  furnish  by  a  Certain  day  may  be  liable  to  the 
Least  Exception —  however  you  will  be  the  most  Competent  Judges 
of  the  proper  Ways  &  Means —  I  can  Only  say  that  your  Conse- 
quence as  a  State  in  a  great  Degree  Depends  on  your  making  a 
Respectable  Appearance  in  the  field — more  Especially  as  the  Enemy 
are  in  possession  of  your  Capital — in  which  case  any  supineness 
gives  ground  for  Censure  which  if  I  am  Rightly  Instructed  Some 
States  are  very  Liberal  in  bestowing — Calling  us  a  Dead  weight 
on  their  hands — with  Other  Language  not  quite  so  Respectful  as 
this  State  at  one  day  had  a  Right  to  Expect — and  which  I  know  she 
has  power  to  Command  when  properly  exerted. 

Your  Troops  are  Second  to  none  in  the  field — They  have 
stepped  the  first  for  Glory — for  God's  Sake  by  some  means  Com- 
plete your  Regiments — give  us  Clothing  and  let  us  be  Embodied 
together — and  I  pledge  my  life  &  Reputation  to  produce  a  Convic- 
tion to  the  World  that  we  have  a  just  Claim  to — and  will  hold  the 
first  Rank  in  the  free  &  Independent  States  of  America — 

I  wish  you  to  call  on  His  Excellence  President  Wharton  for  the 
Return   &   Letter  Accompanying  it — that  you  may  be  the  better 
Enabled  to  Estimate  the  Numbers  &  Necessaries  Wanting — 
Interim  I  am  with  Every  Esteem 

your  Most  Ob't 

Anth'y  Wayne. 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  123 

Recruiting  Officers  to  General  Wayne. 

Allen  Town,  March  30th  1778 
Dear  General, — Northampton  County  being  the  place  appointed 
to  Recruit  in  Does  not  turn  out  according  to  Expectation  it  Being 
so  full  of  Tories,  We  have  got  but  15  Recruits  Between  us  if  you 
would  be  kind  Enough  to  send  an  officer  for  these  Recruits  or  Call 
us  home  or  Give  us  orders  to  go  to  Some  other  place  to  Recruit  in — 
We  were  ordered  to  this  County  by  the  Council,  Therefore  we 
would  be  Glad  to  know  how  to  Proceed  at  present  and  being  ordered 
by  the  Council  not  to  send  Recruits  to  Camp  without  a  proper 
Officer  as  they  are  troublesome  to  us  here 

Dear  S'r  We  Remain  your  humble 
Servts 

William  Oldham  Cap't 
Charles  McHenry  Cap't 

Colonel  Bayard  to  General  Wayne. 

Lancaster  April  nth  '78 
Dear  General, — your  favour  I  received  and  soon  after  waited 
on  the  Governor  &  Counsil  and  represented  the  Distress'd  situation 
of  the  Officers  and  Soldiers  of  the  Penn'a  Line,  the  Governor 
Assured  me  that  he  would  Interest  himself  in  the  matter,  and  do  all 
in  his  power  to  have  them  well  Clothed,  for  that  purpose  I  was  de- 
sired to  wait  on  Mr.  Mease  (who  was  unfortunately  out  of  Town 
and  had  been  5  days)  with  a  message  from  them,  but  as  he  is  not 
yet  return'd,  nothing  Could  be  done,  the  Governor  told  me,  not 
five  minutes  ago,  that  he  was  expected  in  every  hour  and  as  soon 
as  he  Came  the  Counsil  would  make  a  demand  of  Clothing  &c 
which  he  must  Comply  with,  or  trouble  wou'd  ensue,  that  they 
were  determined  the  Penn-Line  should  not  suffer  as  they  had  done — 
Captain  Lang  will  undertake  to  supply  all  the  Officers  this  summer 
with  under  Dress  (Jackets  &  Breeches)  he  having  your  Order  for 
that  purpose,  he  purchased  the  other  day  a  pretty  large  quantity  of 
Coarse  and  fine  Linen,  which  is  making  up  for  the  officers  and  men, 
but  are  handed  Out,  almost  as  fast  as  they  are  made  to  officers  that 
pass  and  repass  here —  The  Drummers  and  Fifers  are  not  yet  all 
Clothed,  but  most  of  them  are,     I  shall  send  them  on  Monday  next 


i24  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE, 

to  Camp,  sooner  they  could  not  be  sent —  Mr  Henry  will  have  the 
Guns  and  Bayonets  and  some  newly  Constructed  Cartouch  Boxes 
ready  next  week.  Spontoons  are  about  but  will  not  be  ready  so 
soon. 

The  Necessary  Acco't  for  yourself  Mr.  Howell  unfortunately  lost, 
he  will  be  obliged  to  you  for  another,  In  the  mean  time  he'll  en- 
deavour to  procure  white  Cloth  Trimmings  &c  and  have  them  ready 
for  you 

Recruits  Come  in  but  slowly,  those  that  do  are  fitted  for  Camp — 
I  mean  to  return  to  Camp  next  week  if  you  have  no  objections, 
bringing  with  me  all  the  Clothing  &c  I  can  possibly  procure — 

Whose  business  is  it  to  look  over  Captain  Langs  representation  to 
the  Assembly  ? 

I  am  with  real  Esteem 

your  very  hble  serv't 

S.  Bayard 

General  Wayne  to  R.  Peters,  Secretary  of  War, 

Mount  Joy  12th  April  1778 

My  Dear  Sir, — What  are  Congress  doing — why  is  the  Establish- 
ment of  the  Army  put  off  to  this  late  season  ? — why  have  not  the 
Respective  states  their  Quota  of  men  in  the  field  ? — why  this  torpor 
— why  this  supineness? — when  the  season  for  Action  has  Arrived  ? — 
when  the  whole  power  of  Britain  is  exerting  itself  to  pour  in  Troops 
in  Order  to  Effect  a  total  Conquest —  now  is  the  time  to  strike  before 
that  force  arrives —  is  it  Possible  that  America  means  to  submit — or 
does  she  expect  that  her  Militia  will  be  able  to  Crush  the  Enemy? — 
has  the  easy  Conquest  of  Burgoyne  lulled  Congress  into  a  state  of 
security? —  if  it  has,  farewell  to  American  Liberty — as  Militia  will 
never  defend  it —  let  me  Assure  you  that  the  Yeomanry  of  the  Neigh- 
bouring states  in  our  Interest  would  find  work  Enough  to  keep  those 
of  a  Contrary  Opinion  in  awe —  Jersey,  Maryland,  &  Penns'a  could 
not  Effect  it  without  Assistance  from  the  Other  states —  I  don't 
mention  this  from  Report,  but  from  my  Own  Observation — during 
my  March  through  them  this  Winter 

In  Order  therefore  to  Overawe  this  faction  and  to  Crush  Mr. 
Howe  before  he's  Reinforced — force  in  twenty  or  thirty  thousand 
men  and  leave  nothing  to  Chance — 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  125 

At  present  the  Enemy  far  outnumber  us — and  unless  speedy  sup- 
plies arrive — We  shall  not  long  retain  this  Ground — and  where  we 
shall  make  the  next  stand  I  will  not  undertake  to  say —  for  my  own 
part  I  have  but  a  single  Life  to  lose  and  I  shall  not  think  that  worth 
saving  at  the  Expense  of  my  Liberty  or  the  Liberty  of  my  Country 
— I  am  almost  out  of  patience  with  this  bad  World. 

Adieu  yours  most 

sincerely 

Ant'y  Wayne. 
Richard  Peters,  Esqr 
at 
York  Town — 


General  Wayne  to  Preside?it  Wharton  of  Pennsylvania. 

Mount  Joy  27th  March  1778 

Dear  Sir, — It's  at  last  Concluded  to  throw  the  Penns'a  Troops 
into  one  Division  after  Reducing  them  to  ten  Regiments — which  I 
believe  will  be  as  many  as  we  can  fill —  I  have  but  little  hopes  of 
being  Supplied  with  many  recruits — unless  the  Officers  in  the  Back 
Counties  meet  with  more  Success,  than  those  in  Phil'aand  Chester — 
an  Officer  from  the  Latter  came  in  yesterday  after  being  out  five 
weeks  without  a  single  Recruit —  I  would  beg  leave  to  Suggest  the 
Expediency  of  Employing  a  greater  Number  of  Officers  in  that 
business  in  Berks  Lancaster,  York  &  Cumberland  Counties — as 
the  most  likely  places  to  meet  with  Success —  I  fear  all  our  exer- 
tions in  this  way  will  fall  far  short  of  our  wishes — and  that  Nothing 
but  a  Draft  will  be  Adequate  to  the  business. 

It's  rumored  that  the  Enemy  have  Evacuated  Rhode  Island — & 
are  drawing  all  their  force  to  one  focus —  if  this  should  be  the 
case — as  we  have  Ground  to  think  it  is — they  will  be  too  powerful 
for  us  in  the  field — unless  great  and  Speedy  Supplies  are  thrown  in — 
it  therefore  becomes  the  Interest  and  Duty  of  this  State  to  make  an 
Immediate  and  Effectual  exertion  to  Complete  her  Quota  of  men — 
but  whilst  this  is  doing — let  me  Intreat  you  Sir  Not  to  neglect  pro- 
viding the  Linen  Overalls  and  Other  Clothing  to  enable  us  to  take 
the  field  with  some  Eclat — which  will  add  both  Spirit  and  health  to 
your  Troops — for  you  may  Rest  Assured  that  nine  out  of  ten  of  the 


126  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

Deaths  and  Desertions  in  this  Army  are  owing  to  Dirt  and  Naked- 
ness— 

I  have  the  happiness  to  Inform  your  Excellency  that  the  Troops  of 
this  State  Enjoy  a  much  greater  share  of  Health  than  any  Other  part 
of  the  Army — and  I  pledge  my  Reputation  to  keep  them  so  on  Con- 
dition that  I  can  be  provided  with  Linen  and  Other  Clothing. 

It's  to  you  Sir  that  we  look  up  to  for  these  Matters — and  in  this 
case  we  Consider  you  as  our  Common  father — 
Adieu  my  Dear  Sir  and  believe 

me  yours  Most  Sincerely 

AntV  Wayne — 
[His  Excellency  Gov'r 
Tho's  Wharton.] 

President  WJiarton  to  General  Wayne. 

In  Council. 

Lancaster  April  2nd  1778 

Sir, — I  am  favoured  with  yours  of  the  twenty  seventh  of  March  the 
contents  of  which  I  communicated  to  Council.  They  are  of  opinion 
with  you  that  a  greater  number  of  officers  should  be  employed  on 
the  recruiting  Service  and  these,  such  as  can  be  depended  upon  not 
only  for  their  sobriety,  but  industry  and  expertness  in  that  neces- 
sary business; — and  I  am  fully  of  opinion  that  there  should  con- 
stantly remain  in  each  County,  officers — properly  qualified  to  recruit, 
in  order  that  the  battalions  should  be  kept  complete,  as  well  as  to 
apprehend  deserters. — 

I  am  a  good  deal  astonished  to  find  that  an  officer  could  be  five 
weeks  in  Chester  County,  and  not  have  it  in  his  power  to  recruit 
one  man : — I  doubt  he  has  not  been  very  attentive  to  that  part  of 
his  duty. — The  accounts  that  Council  receives  from  most  of  the 
counties  are  upon  the  whole  favourable ; — and  I  am  in  hopes  several 
hundred  men  will  in  the  course  of  a  few  weeks  join  the  army,  if 
they  do  not,  I  know  of  no  other  plan  to  supply  our  quota  of  troops 
for  our  common  defence. — If  money  is  an  inducement  for  men  to 
enlist  in  our  regiments,  this  State  has  given  generously,  and  the 
officers  I  think  have  sufficient  encouragement  to  do  their  duty. — 

It  affords  me  great  pleasure  to  hear  that  the  troops  of  this  State 
are  at  least  as  healthy,  as  those  of  any  other, — and  that  their  repu- 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  127 

tation  is  equal  to  any,  is  well  known. — That  you  will  continue  your 
exertions  to  keep  them  so — I  have  no  doubt — and  it  gives  me  no 
small  pain  to  find  that  those  brave  men  are  not  provided  with  such 
necessaries  as  they  have  a  right  to  expect  which  would  encourage 
them  to  persevere  in  doing  their  duty. — Council  are  doing  all  they 
can  to  provide  clothing  for  them,  but  I  fear  their  good  intentions 
will  not  be  crowned  with  the  success  they  wish. 

Mr.  Howell  is  indefatigable  in  getting  the  clothing  made  up — 
the  want  of  buttons  delayed  them  a  little y  but  they  are  now  going  on — 
I  am  Sir 

your  Very  humble  Servant 

Tho  Wharton  Ju'r  Prest. 
On  Publick  Service. 

It  is  not  to  be  wondered  at  that,  amidst  embarrass- 
ments and  disappointments  such  as  these,  even  the 
hopeful  spirit  of  Wayne  was  inclined  at  times  to  give 
way  to  despair.  "  I  hoped,"  he  says,  in  a  semi-official 
letter  to  his  friend  Mr.  Peters,  the  Secretary  of  the 
Board  of  War,  "  to  be  able  to  clothe  the  division  un- 
der my  command,  but  the  distresses  of  the  other  part 
of  the  troops  belonging  to  this  State  were  such  as 
to  beggar  all  description.  Humanity  obliged  me  to 
divide  what  would  have  in  part  clothed  six  hundred 
men  among  thirteen  regiments,  which  was  also  neces- 
sary in  order  to  prevent  mutiny.  ...  I  am  not  fond 
of  danger,  but  I  would  most  cheerfully  agree  to  enter 
into  action  once  every  week  in  place  of  visiting  each 
hut  of  my  encampment  (which  is  my  constant  prac- 
tice), and  where  objects  strike  my  eye  and  ear  whose 
wretched  condition  beggars  all  description.  The  whole 
army  is  sick  and  crawling  with  vermin. "  The  only 
answer  he  can  get  from  Mr.  Peters,  as  late  as  the  15th 
of  May,  is  this  :  "  Vast  quantities  of  clothing  have  been 


128  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

ordered,  and  I   cannot  tell  why  they  have  not  been 
distributed." 

In  addition  to  all  these  troubles  in  supplying  the 
physical  wants  of  the  soldiers,  a  new  cause  of  embar- 
rassment arose  from  the  legislation  of  Congress  in 
regard  to  the  pay  of  the  officers.  He  writes  to  his 
old  friend  and  family  connection  Sharp  Delany  on  the 
2 1 st  of  May,  "The  difficulty  I  experience  in  keeping 
good  officers  from  resigning,  and  causing  them  to  do 
their  duty  in  the  line,  has  almost  determined  me  to 
give  it  up,  and  return  to  my  Sabine  fields,  but  I  first 
wish"  (he  adds,  with  uncontrollable  patriotic  impulse) 
"  to  see  the  enemy  sail  for  the  West  Indies !  .  .  .  We 
have  received  the  vote  of  Congress  for  seven  years' 
half  pay  at  the  termination  of  the  war.  .  .  .  For  my 
own  part  I  have  a  competency,  and  neither  look  nor 
wish  for  any  gratuity,  other  than  liberty  and  honor ;  but 
the  discontented  say  that  seven  years'  half  pay  would 
not  near  make  up  for  the  depreciation  of  the  money." 

This  depreciation  of  the  money,  as  is  well  known,  was 
a  source  of  endless  trouble  with  the  soldiers  during 
the  war,  as  will  more  fully  appear  hereafter.  It  is 
very  true,  as  has  often  been  said,  that  there  were  some 
reasons  outside  of  maladministration  for  the  constantly 
recurring  deficiencies  in  the  army  service  at  Valley 
Forge,  especially  in  the  matter  of  food-supplies.  These 
were  not  in  any  great  measure  due  to  the  disaffection 
of  the  people,  as  has  sometimes  been  said,  but  were 
owing  to  the  absolute  exhaustion  of  the  resources  of 
the  country  surrounding  the  camp  caused  by  the  ex- 
actions of  both  armies.  Besides,  it  is  to  be  remem- 
bered that,  while  the  territory  along  the  coast,  with  the 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  129 

exception  of  New  York,  was  open  to  our  trade  with  all 
the  world,  and  that  this  trade  was  largely  carried  on 
with  satisfactory  results  during  the  war,  notwithstanding 
the  danger  of  the  capture  of  the  vessels,  Philadelphia 
was  entirely  cut  off  from  all  communication  with  the 
outside  world,  and  that  land  transportation  upon  any 
considerable  scale  did  not  then  exist  After  all,  how- 
ever, the  grand  motor  in  all  warlike  operations — real 
money — was  not  to  be  had,  and  this  was  the  true  source 
of  the  difficulty. 

While  the  army  was  encamped  at  Valley  Forge,  a 
successful  effort  was  made  to  improve  its  knowledge  of 
military  movements  and  to  make  its  discipline  more 
efficient.  The  principal  agent  in  this  most  important 
work  was  the  Baron  von  Steuben,  who  had  formerly 
held  high  rank  in  the  Prussian  service,  who  had  been 
appointed  Inspector-General  by  Washington,  and  who 
was  perfectly  familiar  with  those  details  of  military 
organization  which  had  rendered  the  army  of  Frederick 
the  Great  the  most  successful  of  all  European  armies. 
Steuben  had  so  great  a  love  for  the  American  cause 
that,  although  a  general  in  the  Prussian  service,  he  did 
not  hesitate  to  become  a  drill-sergeant  at  Valley  Forge. 
He  began  with  the  manual  of  arms,  instructed  the 
soldiers,  in  squads  at  first,  in  tactical  movements,  and 
within  a  month  made  the  officers  and  men  familiar  with 
army  manoeuvres  on  a  larger  scale.  He  was  active, 
minute,  and  exacting  in  his  instructions,  unwearied  in 
his  efforts  to  teach  the  men  the  simpler  elements  of 
the  drill  and  how  to  act  most  efficiently  together,  and 
it  cannot  be  doubted  that  the  ease  with  which  the  army 

manoeuvred  at  Monmouth  in  the  face  of  the  enemy  was 

10 


i3o  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE, 

in  large  measure  due  to  his  persistent  instructions.  He 
began  his  work  on  the  24th  of  March,  and,  considering 
all  the  difficulties  which  he  overcame,  not  the  least  of 
which  was  his  total  ignorance  of  the  English  language, 
his  success  was  wonderful.  It  has  even  been  said  that 
he  taught  the  Americans  how  to  use  the  bayonet;  but 
any  one  who  reads  Wayne's  account  of  the  battle  of 
Germantown  will  be  inclined  to  doubt  the  validity  of 
this  claim. 

During  the  winter  food  became  scarce  at  Valley 
Forge.  There  was  neither  proper  clothing  for  the  men, 
nor  money  for  the  payment  of  their  wages.  The  forays 
in  the  neighborhood  of  the  city,  although  under  the 
charge  of  Major  Henry  Lee,  a  most  active  and  enter- 
prising officer,  did  not  provide  sufficient  food  for  the 
camp.  Towards  the  middle  of  February,  therefore, 
Wayne  was  sent  with  a  considerable  force  to  New 
Jersey,  and  the  arduous  duty  of  procuring  what  cattle 
he  could  find  in  the  region  between  Bordentown  and 
Salem  for  the  use  of  the  army,  and  of  destroying  what 
he  could  not  carry  off,  was  imposed  upon  him.  He 
entered  upon  this  work  with  his  usual  zeal  and  activity, 
and  in  its  performance  acquired  from  his  enemies  the 
curious  sobriquet  of  "  Drover  Wayne."  Many  were 
the  skirmishes  which  took  place  in  the  sands  and  among 
the  pines  of  Jersey  during  the  cheerless  winter  of 
1778.  Both  parties  found  it  difficult  to  discover  the 
cattle  they  were  in  search  of,  for,  although  the  country 
abounded  with  them,  they  were  for  the  most  part  care- 
fully concealed  by  their  owners  in  the  woods. 

The  following  letter  gives  some  account  of  his  for- 
aging in  New  Jersey : 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  131 

General  Wayne  to  General  Washington. 

Haddonfield  4th  March  1778 

Sir, — Soon  after  I  wrote  your  Excellency  from  Mount  Holly — I 
rec'd  Intelligence  that  the  Enemy  had  Detached  themselves  in  small 
parties  and  were  Collecting  Cattle  forage  &c  in  the  Vicinity  of 
Haddonfield,  Coopers,  and  Timber  Creeks.  This  Intelligence  In- 
duced me  (altho'  my  Numbers  were  few)  to  make  a  forced  March 
and  Endeavor  to  drive  in  or  cut  off  some  of  their  parties —  At  nine 
o'clock  at  night  I  arrived  at  one  Capt.  Matlacks  about  four  Miles  to 
the  South  East  of  this  place  where  I  was  soon  after  joined  by  Gen'l 
Pulaski  with  about  fifty  Light  Horse —  Col  Ellis  with  two  Hundred 
&  fifty  Militia,  being  the  Whole  of  his  Command,  took  post  at  Eves- 
ham Meeting  at  the  junction  of  the  Roads  leading  to  Egg  Harbor 
and  Mount  Holly —  At  Ten  O'clock  Genl.  Pulaski  attempted  to 
surprise  the  Enemy's  advanced  post  at  a  Mill  a  half  a  Mile  Out 
of  Haddonfield — he  failed  in  the  attempt — but  Col  Stirling  who 
Commanded  the  Enemy  having  in  the  fore  part  of  the  Evening 
Rec'd  Intelligence  of  our  March, — and  our  Numbers  being  Ex- 
aggerated to  thousands — moving  in  three  Columns — the  one  to  his 
Right  an  Other  to  his  left  and  the  third  in  front — the  North 
Briton  thought  it  prudent  to  Retreat  under  Cover  of  the  Shipping, 
he  accordingly  Decamped  at  Eleven  at  night  and  Arrived  at  Cooper 
ferry  before  day — Destroying  some  Spirits  and  leaving  Waggons 
Horses  Cattle  &c  behind  which  he  had  stolen  from  the  Inhabitants 
who  have  since  Claimed  and  Rec'd  their  property — 

The  Troops  being  much  fatigued — I  could  not  follow  before  late 
next  Morning —  I  advanced  with  Gen'l  Pulaski  to  Reconnoitre 
their  position — and  on  coming  near  the  ferry  found  that  they  were 
there  in  full  force,  the  Wind  being  too  high  to  admit  the  Boats  to 
pass — however  they  were  too  well  posted  to  do  any  thing  with  them 
— being  covered  and  flanked  by  their  shipping —  About  the  Mid- 
dle of  the  Afternoon  the  Wind  lulled  when  they  threw  over  about 
36  head  of  poor  Cattle  the  whole  they  had  been  able  to  save  from 
the  Numbers  they  had  Stolen. 

On  Observing  that  they  were  about  Retreating  over  the  River — 
&  Gen'l  Pulaski  anxious  to  Charge. — I  ordered  up  Capt.  Doyle 
with  his  Company  consisting  of  Fifty  men — who  lay  three  miles  in 
advance  of  the  Rest,  directing  the  Other  part  of  the  Detachment 


1 32  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

to  follow  as  fast  as  possible,  About  the  same  time  I  Rec'd  Intel- 
ligence of  a  fresh  body  of  Troops  having  crossed  from  Philad'a 
who  were  Marching  up  Cooper's  Creek  and  seemed  pushing  for  our 
Rear —  Col.  Ellis  being  posted  with  his  Militia  on  that  Route  I 
ordered  him  to  Advance  and  Receive  them — 

About  this  time  Capt.  Doyle  Arrived — near  the  Enemy's  Cover- 
ing party — whose  numbers  appeared  to  be  about  three  times  as  many 
as  ours  when  joined  by  the  Horse — but  as  they  were  approachable 
on  each  flank  &  the  Center  being  favourable  for  the  Cavalry 
Gen'l  Pulaski  &  Myself  were  determined  to  attack  them —  In 
Order  to  gain  time  for  the  main  body  to  come  up,  as  well  as  to 
Amuse  and  prevent  that  party  of  the  Enemy  from  proceeding  further 
up  Cooper's  Creek — We  soon  Obliged  the  Covering  party  to  give 
way — when  Mr.  Stirling  advanced  in  full  force  to  support  them — 
this  answered  my  expectations  and  wishing  to  lead  them  from  under 
Cover  of  their  shipping — I  Ordered  the  Infantry  to  keep  up  a  Con- 
stant fire  falling  back  by  slow  degrees  until  they  should  be  joined 
by  Col  Butlers  Detachment —  About  the  same  time  the  Hessian 
Grenadiers  attempted  to  force  over  Cooper's  bridge  in  face  of  about 
ioo  Militia  under  Col  Ellis — but  they  soon  gave  up  that  idea — find- 
ing it  Impracticable. 

The  fire  of  the  Enemy  from  their  field  pieces  shipping  and 
Musketry  became  General —  however  they  could  not  be  drawn  out — 
but  night  coming  on,  and  Col  Butler  not  being  able  to  get  up  until 
too  late  to  see — the  Enemy  Effected  their  Retreat  to  Phila — before 
Nine  at  Night  but  not  without  some  loss  attended  with  Circum- 
stances of  Disgrace.  Genl.  Pulaski  behaved  with  his  usual  bravery 
on  the  Occasion  having  his  own  with  four  Other  Horses  Wounded — 
The  fifty  Infantry  being  the  only  part  that  had  an  Opportunity  of 
Engaging — behaved  with  a  Degree  of  bravery  that  would  have  done 
Honor  to  the  Oldest  Veterans —  Mr  Abercrumbie  who  Commanded 
the  Detachment  that  went  to  Salem — hearing  that  the  Militia  were 
Collecting  in  great  Numbers — and  that  we  were  advancing  from 
Mount  Holly — also  took  the  Horrors  and  Embarking  on  board  His 
boats  &c  got  safe  to  Phila — three  Evenings  ago  leaving  all  his 
Collection  of  Cattle  &c  &c  behind. — Thus  ended  the  Jersey  Ex- 
pedition which  has  not  been  attended  with  that  Advantage  that 
those  North  Brittons  expected  of  their  first  Arrival — 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWN,  ETC.  133 

I  shall  begin  my  March  for  Camp  tomorrow  Morning  it  was  not 
in  my  power  to  move  until  I  could  procure  shoes  for  the  Troops 
almost  barefoot — 

I  rec'd  your  Excellence's  Letter  of  the  28th  and  Col  Biddle's  of 
the  25th  and  shall  as  far  as  is  in  my  power  Comply  with  the  Con- 
tents— 

When  I  have  the  pleasure  of  seeing  your  Excellency  I  shall  com- 
municate such  Ideas  as  have  occurred  to  me  with  respect  to  the 
Importance  of  this  part  of  this  State  and  the  most  probable  mode 
of  Covering  it  from  the  Depradations  of  the  Enemy — who  will  be 
able  to  draw  Great  Supplies  from  it  if  left  uncovered 
Interim  I  am  your  Excellency's  Most 

Ob't  &  Very  Hum  Ser't 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

[Gen'l  Washington.] 

One  of  the  subjects  which  naturally  preoccupied  the 
mind  of  the  commander-in-chief  during  the  winter 
was  the  next  move  of  the  army.  Many  advocated  an 
active  campaign,  but  it  seems  hard  for  us  to  under- 
stand, now  that  we  know  so  fully  the  crippled  condition 
of  the  army,  how  such  a  plan  could  have  been  seriously 
entertained.  General  Reed,  although  opposed  to  such 
a  campaign,  urged  the  commander-in-chief,  as  early  as 
December,  to  make  a  sudden  move,  secret  as  to  its 
destination,  in  the  hope  of  gaining  possession  of  New 
York,  then  the  great  storehouse  of  those  supplies  of 
the  enemy  of  which  our  army  was  so  much  in  need. 
Although  the  plan  was  not  favorably  considered  at  the 
time,  it  was  laid  before  a  council  of  general  officers 
in  April,  and  it  would  appear  from  General  Wayne's 
letters  of  the  21st  of  that  month  that  he  approved 
its  general  features.  It  was  relinquished,  although,  be- 
sides Wayne,  Generals  Greene,  Knox,  Poor,  Varnum, 
Muhlenberg,  and  Lord  Stirling  favored  its  adoption. 


i34  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

General  Wayne  to  General  Washington. 

Mount  Joy  21st  April  1778 

Sir, — I  took  the  Liberty  to  suggest  to  your  Excellency  (some  time 
since)  the  Idea  of  making  an  Offensive  Campaign  against  such 
places  as  afford  the  Greatest  prospect  of  Success  to  us  &  Injury 
to  the  enemy — but  the  Object  will  Depend  upon  your  force — the 
first  and  most  Desirable  would  be  Sir  Wra  Howe, — the  next  New 
York— 

The  Question  then  will  arise  how  is  the  Army  to  be  Supplied  and 
the  stores  secured — The  Answer  is — that  the  Magazines  of  Provisions 
&  forage  are  to  be  Diffused  in  small  Quantities  through  each  State  so 
as  not  to  leave  in  any  one  place  sufficient  to  induce  the  Enemy  to 
make  an  expedition  against  us — the  Military  stores  should  be  secured 
at  Sunbury  in  a  position  Difficult  of  access — and  Defended  by  a 
Garrison  that  would  Oblige  the  Enemy  to  make  use  of  a  Consider- 
able force  with  Artillery — and  situated  in  the  Heart  of  a  Well 
Effected  Country,  One  Hundred  and  Thirty  Miles  N.  W.  of  Phil'a. 
— were  they  to  March  to  such  a  place  Phila.  and  New  York  would 
be  left  in  our  power — by  Dividing  their  Army  they  would  give  us 
an  Opening  for  making  a  Capital  Stroke — On  the  Contrary  if  We 
still  Continue  on  the  Defensive  it  will  be  in  their  power  to  Harass 
us  at  pleasure — and  lead  us  a  March  that  will  Debilitate  and  Destroy 
your  Array  more  than  a  severe  Engagement — the  time  and  place 
of  Action  will  lay  with  them  which  probably  will  not  be  the  most 
favourable  to  us — 

Many  Reasons  (in  my  humble  opinion)  both  political  and  pru- 
dential point  to  the  Expediency  of  putting  the  Enemy  on  the  De- 
fensive— their  plan  of  Operation  (perhaps)  already  formed  in  Eng- 
land, will  by  this  means  be  Disconcerted — it  will  Oblige  them  to 
Evacuate  New  York  or  Phil'a,  the  one  or  the  Other  with  its  Garri- 
son must  Inevitably  fall  into  your  hands  : 

In  either  case  the  fruits  of  two  hard  Campaigns  at  the  Expense  of 
much  blood  and  treasure,  would  be  lost  to  Britain  and  their  Glory 
vanished — whilst  the  Arms  of  America  would  become  Respectable 
at  home  to  both  friends  &  Enemies  and  shine  with  Double  Lustre, 
in  the  Courts  of  Europe — 

Should  you  move  for  the  North  River  the  Militia  of  New  York  and 
the  Eastern  States  will  draw  to  your  Camp — and  from  their  being 


BRANDYWINE,   GERMANTOWJST,  ETC.  135 

so  lately  flushed  with  Conquest  they  will  hope  to  have  the  same 
good  fortune —  So  that  if  Mr.  Howe  should  attempt  to  succour  Clin- 
ton— it  will  in  all  probability  be  productive  of  the  Most  Happy  and 
Glorious  Consequences — for  a  Conquering  Army  finds  no  Difficulties 
— It  would  be  presumption  in  me  to  take  up  your  Excellency's 
time  on  a  Subject  which  I  am  Confident  has  not  Escaped  your 
serious  thought — I  shall  therefore  only  Assure  you  that  whatever 
part  may  be  assigned  to  me  I  shall  always  and  at  all  times,  be  ready 
to  serve  you  with  the  best  Service  of  your  Excellency's 

MostOb't 
and  very 

Humb  Ser't 

Ant'y  Wayne. 
[Gen'l  Washington.] 


CHAPTER    IV. 


MONMOUTH, 


Early  in  June  it  became  apparent  that  the  British 
were  preparing  to  evacuate  Philadelphia,  as  it  was  feared 
by  them  that  a  French  fleet  would  soon,  in  pursuance 
of  our  treaty  of  alliance  with  France  of  February,  1778, 
blockade  the  English  fleet  in  the  Delaware.  Sir  Henry 
Clinton,  the  successor  of  Sir  William  Howe  as  com- 
mander-in-chief, arrived  in  Philadelphia  on  the  8th  of 
June,  and  found  preparations  for  the  evacuation  far 
advanced.  Washington,  as  usual,  asked  the  opinion 
of  his  generals  as  to  the  course  to  be  taken.  Wayne, 
among  others,  made  a  reply,  which  we  annex. 


General  Wayne  to  Getieral  Washington, 

Mount  Joy  18th  June  1778 
Sir, — I  have  Maturely  Considered  the  Matters  which  your  Ex- 
cellency was  pleased  to  lay  before  the  Council  of  General  Officers 
last  evening — and  am  Clearly  of  Opinion  that  any  attempt  on  the 
City  of  Philad'a  with  your  present  force  when  defended  by  the 
numbers  of  Troops  that  may  be  brought  to  act  against  you — will 
be  Ineligible —  But  it  is  my  wish  &  Opinion  that  you  cause  the 
sick  in  Camp  and  its  vicinity  to  be  Immediately  Removed  further 
into  the  Country — &  that  the  whole  of  the  Army  be  put  in  Motion 
the  soonest  possible  for  some  of  the  ferries  on  the  Delaware  above 
Trent  Town — so  as  to  be  Ready  to  act  as  soon  as  the  Enemy's 
movem't  shall  be  ascertained —  If  the  North  River  should  be  found 
to  be  their  Object — I  am  for  passing  the  Delaware  Immediately, 
136 


MONMOUTH.  137 


Divesting  the  Army  of  every  Article  of  Incumbrance — and  then 
with  the  aid  of  the  Jersey  Militia  take  the  first  favorable  Oppor- 
tunity to  make  a  Vigorous  and  serious  attack  upon  the  Enemy — 
but  in  Order  to  Complete  your  Victory  or  facilitate  your  Retreat  (if 
the  latter  should  be  found  necessary)  I  would  wish  that  Gen'l  Max- 
well with  his  Brigade  and  a  Body  of  the  Militia  might  gain  their 
Rear  where  his  Action  will  be  governed  by  your  Motions — i.e.  when 
the  Attack  is  made  by  you — it  shall  be  a  signal  for  his  onset  which 
ought  to  be  Rather  a  feint  than  Otherwise.  Should  your  attack  suc- 
ceed it  may  be  productive  of  the  most  happy  Consequences — but 
should  it  prove  unsuccessful  the  Enemy  dare  not  nor  can  not  pur- 
sue any  great  Distance,  Otherwise  their  Baggage  &  provisions  will 
be  Endangered — surrounded  as  they  will  be  by  troops  who  know 
how  to  rally  in  case  of  a  Misfortune  and  to  Recoil  upon  their  pur- 
suers. 

I  am  the  more  anxious  to  take  this  Opportunity  of  striking  them 
(in  case  they  should  take  this  route) — as  I  am  Confident  that  the 
minds  of  the  Soldiers  of  either  Army  will  be  much  Influenc'd  by 
our  Movements —  On  the  Enemy's  part  it  will  have  the  Appear- 
ance of  a  Retreat — on  ours,  that  of  Pursuit —  We  may  Inculcate 
the  Idea  of  Besieging  Clinton — he  will  Apprehend  it — and  you  will 
more  than  probably  effect  it — 

Interim  I  am  your  Excellency's  &c 

Anthony  Wayne. 

It  would  appear  from  the  following  letter  that  the 
army  was  not  very  well  prepared  for  the  campaign 
upon  which  it  was  about  to  enter : 

General  Wayne  to  R.  Peters,  Secretary  of  War. 

Mount  Joy  13th  May  1778 
Dear  Sir, — Want  of  time — want  of  temper — want  of  Oppor- 
tunity— want  of  everything  but  Inclination  has  prevented  me  from 
writing  to  you  for  some  weeks —  You  will  now  give  me  leave  to 
Congratulate  you  on  the  Establishment  of  the  Independance  of  the 
United  States  of  America —  The  Declaration  of  the  French  Em- 
basador  to  the  Court  of  Britain  must   Inevitably  produce  a  War 


138  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

between  those  powers — which  never  could  have  been  better  timed 
— I  thank  my  God  that  the  Attention  of  Great  Britain  is  likely  to 
be  Diverted  from  America — Otherwise  I  should  dread  the  Conse- 
quence— for  altho'  our  Troops  are  daily  Improving  in  Military  Dis- 
cipline by  very  swift  Degrees — yet  we  are  much  weaker  &  worse 
Clothed  than  at  the  Close  of  the  last  Campaign —  I  hoped  to  be  able 
to  Clothe  the  Division  under  my  Command  but  the  Distresses  of 
the  Other  part  of  the  troops  belonging  to  this  State  were  such  as  to 
beggar  all  Discription —  Humanity  Obliged  me  to  Divide  what 
would  have  in  part  Clothed  six  Hundred  men  among  thirteen  Regi- 
ments which  also  being  necessary  in  Order  to  prevent  mutiny  and  to 
put  a  stop  to  that  Spirit  of  Desertion — which  has  taken  but  too  deep 
a  Root — and  is  not  yet  subsided — our  Officers  too  are  hourly  Offering 
in  their  Resignations — especially  those  who  have  yet  some  property 
left —  When  or  where  it  will  end  God  knows — the  pain  I  feel  on  the 
Occasion  is  better  felt  than  expressed — I  am  heartily  tired  of  this 
way  of  life — being  the  only  General  Officer  belonging  to  the  State 
the  whole  line  Apply  to  me  on  every  Occasion — their  real  wants  are 
too  many  and  too  pressing  to  pass  unheeded  by — but  yet  I  cant 
Alleviate  nor  supply  them. 

I  know  it  must  be  very  Disagreeable  to  hear  so  many  Repititions 
of  this  Nature — but  people  are  very  apt  to  dwell  on  those  subjects 
that  lie  nearest  their  hearts,  or  that  give  them  most  Concern —  lam 
not  fond  of  Danger — but  I  would  most  Cheerfully  agree  to  enter 
into  Action  once  every  week  in  place  of  Visiting  each  part  of  my 
Encampment  (which  is  my  Constant  practice)  and  where  Objects 
strike  my  eye  &  ear — whose  wretched  Condition  beggars  all  Descrip- 
tion— the  Ball  or  Bayonet  could  only  pierce  the  Body — but  such 
Objects  affect  the  mind  and  give  the  keenest  wound  to  every  feeling 
of  Humanity — for  God's  sake  give  us — if  you  can't  give  us  anything 
else — give  us  linen  that  we  may  be  Enabled  to  Rescue  the  poor 
Worthy  fellows  from  the  Vermin  which  are  now  Devouring  them 
and  which  has  Emaciated  &  Reduced  numbers  exactly  to  answer  the 
Description  of  Shakespears  Apothecary —  Some  hundreds  we  thought 
prudent  to  Deposit  some  six  foot  under  Ground — who  have  Died 
of  a  Disorder  produced  by  a  want  of  Clothing —  The  whole  Army 
at  present  are  sick  of  the  same  Disorder,  but  the  Penns'a  line  seem 
to  be  the  most  Infected — a  pointed  &  speedy  exertion  of  Congress 


MONMOUTH.  139 


or  appointing  an  Other  Doc'r  may  yet  remove  the  Disorder — which 
once  done  I  pledge  my  Reputation  we  shall  remove  the  Enemy — for 
I  would  much  Rather  Risque  my  life  Honor  and  the  fate  of  Amer- 
ica on  our  present  force  neatly  and  Comfortably  Uniformed  than  on 
Double  their  number  Covered  with  Rags  &  Crawling  with  Vermin — 
but  I  am  determined  not  to  say  an  Other  word  on  the  subject     " 

I  wrote  a  few  lines  to  my  Daughter  some  time  since — she  has  not 
been  so  kind  as  to  acknowledge  it — how  is  the  young  soldier — will 
he  be  fit  to  take  the  field  before  the  Expiration  of  the  present  War — 
for  I  think  it  bids  fair  to  be  a  long  one — if  we  may  Draw  any  Con- 
clusion from  the  Kings  speech  and  the  Answers  of  the  two  Houses 
of  Parliament — who  promise  to  Assist  him  with  their  lives  and  for- 
tunes in  any  measure  he  may  take  to  humble  the  pride  &  Chastise 
the  perfidy  of  France — and  to  bring  these  States  to  a  proper  sense 
of  their  duty —     Bravo. 

Adieu  and  believe  me  yours  most 
Sincerely 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

[Ric'd  Peters,  Esq., 

of  the  Board  of  War.] 

The  following  is  an  interesting  sketch  of  the  attempt 
to  capture  La  Fayette  at  Barren  Hill.  It  will  be  ob- 
served that  it  makes  the  singular  statement  that  friendly- 
Indians  were  employed  in  our  army  at  Valley  Forge. 

General  Wayne  io  Sharp  Delany. 

Mount  Joy  21st  May  1778 
Dear  Sir, — Various  are  the  Reports — &  many  are  the  Conjectures 
about  the  Enemy's  quitting  Phila — and  the  Quarter  they  are  Des- 
tined for — some  say  New  York,  Others  Halifax  but  the  more  pre- 
vailing Opinion  is  the  West  India  Islands — for  my  own  part  (but  all 
Accounts  agree  that  they  Intend  to),  I  am  not  quite  so  sanguine  as 
some  Others  about  their  Evacuating  their  present  post  without  first 
Offering  us  Battle —  We  were  so  fully  Confident  of  their  being 
about  to  Embark  last  Monday — that  a  Detatchment  of  between  2000 
and   2500  men   under  the   Marquis  De  Lafayette  was  sent  down 


Mo  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

towards  their  lines  to  be  ready  to  take  Possession  of  the  City  as 
soon  as  they  should  Quit  it — but  the  Caitiffs  made  a  forced  March 
the  night  before  last  and  had  thrown  themselves  into  his  Rear — and 
were  near  on  the  point  of  surrounding  him  before  he  had  any  In- 
telligence of  their  Movements —  However  he  made  a  happy  Escape 
by  passing  the  Schuylkill  at  Matsons  ford  and  possessing  the  Gulf 
Hills —  The  Enemy's  Advance  Guards  made  their  Appearance 
on  the  One  Side  Just  as  the  Rear  of  ours  Arrived  on  the  Other — 
their  force  by  every  Acct.  was  about  7000,  and  they  had  Actually 
thrown  themselves  in  between  the  Marquis  and  our  Camp — expect- 
ing to  fall  upon  him  as  he  was  attempting  to  gain  the  Bridge  or 
Swedes  ford — but  by  moving  lower  down  and  Crossing  at  Matson's, 
he  avoided  Inevitable  Destruction —  The  Enemy  must  have  made 
a  March  of  at  least  20  Miles  with  all  that  Body  of  men  totally  un- 
discovered thro'  the  Inattention  of  the  Patroles —  They  Returned  to 
Phila  last  evening  without  either  Killing  or  taking  a  single  man  of 
ours — but  several  Deserters  and  prisoners  are  hourly  Arriving  in 
Camp  taken  by  our  light  troops  &  Oneida  friends  the  Indians  (hang- 
ing on  their  Rear)  who  at  the  first  fire  Killed  five  of  the  Enemies 
horse  and  by  the  War  Whoop  put  the  Remainder  to  flight. 

I  have  already  hinted  that  it's  my  Opinion  Mr  Clinton  will  offer 
us  battle — ie  that  after  shipping  all  their  Baggage  stores  and  heavy 
Artillery — they  will  make  a  forward  move  in  force — but  they  will 
never  Attack  us  on  this  Ground — they  will  either  Retire  After  a 
vain  parade  Otherwise  by  taking  post  in  our  Rear  near  Moor  Hall 
Manoeuvre  us  off  this  Ground — however  this  is  but  Conjecture — 
they  may  possibly  leave  this  State  without  this  parade —  That  a 
capital  movement  will  take  place  in  a  few  days  I  am  very  Confi- 
dent, but  time  alone  will  Determine  the  Object — 

We  have  Rec'd  the  Vote  of  Congress  for  7  years  half  pay  at  the 
termination  of  the  War —  I  am  sorry  to  say  that  it  falls  far  short  of 
giving  satisfaction —  The  Spirit  of  Resignation  seems  to  rage  rather 
more  than  ever  and  is  hourly  taking  place — for  my  own  part  I 
have  a  Competency  and  neither  look  nor  wish  for  any  Gratuity, 
other  than  Liberty  and  Honor — but  the  Discontented  say  that  7 
years  half  pay  would  not  near  make  up  for  the  Depreciation  of  the 
Money  &  the  high  price  of  every  Article  for  this  last  year  being  on 
an  Average  at  least  five  to  one — which  would  Require  ten  years  half 


MONMOUTH.  141 


pay  to  do  even  justice  to  them  for  the  Deficiency  of  the  last —  How 
just  this  mode  of  Reasoning  may  be  I  shall  not  Attempt  to  say  nor 
do  I  mean  to  Advocate  their  Cause — if  they  merit  more  I  doubt 
not  but  Congress  will  make  the  proper  provision — if  not  they  will 
be  Justifiable  in  adhering  to  what  they  have  Done 

The  Difficulty  I  experience  in  keeping  good  Officers   from  Re- 
signing— and  causing  them  to  do  their  Duty  in  the  Line  has  almost 
Determined  me  to  give  it  up  and  Retire  to  my  Sabine  fields — but 
I  first  wish  to  see  the  Enemy  sail  for  the  West  Indies — 
Adieu  my  Dear  Sir  &  believe 

me  yours  most  Sincerely 

Ant'y  Wayne. 
[Col.  Delany.] 


The  British  army,  having  evacuated  Philadelphia, 
crossed  the  Delaware  on  the  18th  of  June  below 
Gloucester,  and  took  the  route  eastward  across  Jersey, 
encumbered  with  a  baggage-train  which  is  said  to  have 
been  nearly  twelve  miles  long.  Washington  crossed 
the  same  river  above  Trenton  on  the  21st,  and  pre- 
pared to  dispute  the  passage  of  the  Raritan  should  the 
enemy  attempt  to  cross  that  river  with  his  baggage-train. 
It  was  found,  however,  that  Sir  Henry  Clinton  kept 
to  the  southward  and  was  moving  in  the  direction  of 
Sandy  Hook.  Washington  followed  on  a  parallel  route, 
and  on  the  26th  of  June  the  armies  were  but  a  few 
miles  from  each  other.  On  the  24th  of  that  month  a 
council  of  war  had  been  held  at  Hopewell,  five  miles 
from  Princeton,  when  certain  questions  as  to  future 
movements  were  submitted  by  the  commander-in-chief 
to  the  general  officers.  The  result  of  this  council,  ac- 
cording to  Colonel  Alexander  Hamilton,  was  worthy  of 
the  "  honorable  society  of  midwives,  and  of  no  other." 


142  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

Wayne  and  Cadwalader,  and  to  a  certain  degree  La 
Fayette  and  Greene,  of  all  the  generals  who  were 
consulted,  advocated  prompt,  vigorous,  and  decided 
action.  The  latter,  it  is  said,  proposed  an  assault,  but 
of  somewhat  too  cautious  a  kind  to  suit  the  impetuous 
valor  of  Wayne.  As  to  the  rest,  they  were  so  pro- 
foundly impressed  with  the  superiority  of  the  English 
troops,  due  to  their  military  skill  and  discipline,  that 
they  were  unwilling  to  confront  them  with  the  ragged 
regiments  which  they  commanded.  The  English  army 
numbered  nearly  twelve  thousand  men,  thoroughly 
equipped  and  organized,  and  was  particularly  strong 
in  that  formidable  infantry  which  often,  before  and 
after  that  date,  gained  a  world-wide  renown  for  its  skill 
and  effectiveness  in  the  use  of  the  bayonet.  The 
American  army  was  somewhat  more  numerous  than 
that  of  the  enemy,  but  many  of  its  officers,  under  the 
baleful  influence  of  General  Charles  Lee,  did  not  feel 
any  confidence  in  its  ability  to  repel  the  English  forces 
in  the  open  field.  Notwithstanding,  however,  General 
Washington  determined  to  take  the  advice  of  Wayne 
and  reject  that  of  the  majority  of  the  council.  He 
probably  thought  that  the  danger  resulting  from  the 
depression  in  the  public  mind  which  would  follow 
from  permitting  a  British  army  with  a  train  twelve 
miles  long  to  cross  New  Jersey  unmolested  should  be 
avoided  at  all  hazards,  even  that  of  losing  a  pitched 
battle.  He  determined,  therefore,  to  attack  as  soon 
as  practicable  at  least  the  rear-guard  of  that  army  by 
which  the  train  was  escorted.  It  will  be  observed  by 
comparing  the  following  letter  of  Wayne  to  the  com- 
mander-in-chief with  the  plan  adopted  for  fighting  the 


MONMOUTH.  143 


battle  of  Monmouth,  that  Wayne's  suggestions  were  in 
the  main  adopted : 

General  Wayne  to  the  Commander-in-Chief. 

Hopewell  24th  June  1778 

Sir, — The  purport  of  the  Questions  Offered  by  your  Excellency 
this  Morning  to  the  Consideration  of  the  Gen'l  Officers  were,  first 
— whether  it  would  be  prudent  or  Advisable  to  Risk  a  General  Action 
with  the  Enemy  at  Present,  Considering  our  state,  and  the  apparent 
state  of  Affairs  in  Europe  at  this  time —  2nd  What  will  be  the 
most  Eligible  mode  of  Conduct  in  pursuing  &  Harassing  the  Enemy 
during  their  March  through  the  Jerseys — 

As  to  the  first  I  would  not  Advise  Risking  a  Gen'l  Action — unless 
Circumstances  should  Render  success  Certain,  or  such  as  not  to 
leave  you  in  a  Worse  situation,  if  Unfortunate,  than  if  you  had  not 
Attacked. 

And  in  answer  to  the  Other — I  am  with  all  due  Deference  of 
Opinion  that  a  select  Corps  of  field  &  other  officers — with  2500 
or  3000  Effective  Rank  &  file  Commanded  by  a  Major — and  two 
Brig'r  Generals,  or  as  many  as  may  be  thought  Advisable,  should 
Immediately  be  Drafted,  and  March  to  gain  the  Rear  of  the  left 
flank  of  the  Enemy  when  they  should  take  the  first  favorable  Oppor- 
tunity of  Attempting  an  Impression  in  force — at  the  same  time 
Sundry  attacks  ought  to  be  made  by  the  Militia,  Maxwells  Brigade, 
Morgans  Corps,  and  Jacksons  and  Cadwalader's  troops  in  order  to 
Divert  the  Enemy's  Attention —  I  would  also  wish  the  main  body 
of  your  Army  to  be  in  a  position  on  the  left  of  their  Rear  so  as  to 
be  Ready  to  Act  effectively — but  not  to  be  Drawn  into  a  Gen'l 
Action  Contrary  to  your  Desire. 

A  Disposition  of  this  or  a  Similar  Nature  would  give  Confidence 
to  your  Detachments — and  terror  to  your  Enemy  who  dare  not 
pursue  success, — lest  they  should  be  drawn  into  some  Difficulty  from 
which  it  would  not  be  easy  for  them  to  Extricate  themselves,  which 
Consideration  together  with  their  Carriages  and  Baggage  will  Induce 
them  to  Remain  Content  with  the  Idea  of  having  Repulsed  those 
who  Attacked  them. 

I  must  beg  your  Excellencies  Indulgence  for  this  liberty— as  I 


144  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

could  not  quite  meet  the  Other  General  officers  in  sentiment  so  as  to 
sign  the  General  Opinion  with  freedom. 

Interim  I  am  your  Excellencies 

Most  Obt  &  very  Hum'l  Ser't 

Ant'y  Wayne. 
[Gen'l  Washington.] 

It  was  necessary  that  Washington  should  act  without 
delay,  as  it  was  feared  that  the  baggage-train  of  the 
enemy  might  soon  be  beyond  the  reach  of  capture. 
So,  on  the  27th,  notwithstanding  the  American  army 
had  been  almost  starved  during  the  march,  and  was 
exhausted  by  the  terrific  heat  of  the  season,  La  Fayette 
was  directed  to  take  five  thousand  troops,  "  picked  and 
selected  men,"  to  hang  on  the  English  rear-guard,  and 
as  soon  as  it  began  to  move  the  next  morning  to  attack 
it.  A  considerable  portion  of  this  detachment  was 
composed  of  Wayne's  troops.  Charles  Lee,  who  had 
opposed  this  aggressive  movement  through  fear  of  the 
vast  superiority  of  the  English  troops,  at  first  declined 
to  command  the  detachment,  but  shortly  afterwards, 
thinking  better  of  this  step,  he  claimed  to  lead  it,  and 
he  was  unfortunately  permitted  to  do  so.  Lee's  com- 
mand marched  about  five  miles  in  advance  of  the  main 
army,  his  orders  were  to  attack  vigorously  the  rear- 
guard, and  he  was  expressly  told  that  he  would  be 
supported  by  the  rest  of  the  army. 

Having  arrived  within  striking  distance  of  the  rear- 
guard near  Freehold,  Wayne  was  directed  by  Lee  the 
next  morning  to  take  with  him  from  his  division  of 
about  twelve  hundred  men  seven  hundred,  to  lead  the 
advance  and  attack  the  left  rear  of  the  English.  He 
was  told  by  General  Lee  that  he  held  the  post  of  honor, 


MONMOUTH.  145 


and  it  soon  turned  out  that  he  held  at  least  the  post 
of  imminent  danger.  The  enemy  did  not  wait  to  be 
attacked,  but  a  party  of  Simcoe's  rangers  or  dragoons 
(American  Loyalists)  charged  upon  a  portion  of  Colonel 
Richard  Butler's  Pennsylvania  regiment  of  about  two 
hundred  men.  They  were  repulsed  and  driven  back, 
but  could  not  be  followed,  for  want  of  cavalry.  General 
Wayne  seems  to  have  considered  this  a  very  brilliant 
piece  of  work.  We  find  the  following  letter  from  him 
to  his  friend  Major  Henry  Lee,  in  which  he  speaks  with 
his  usual  pride  of  the  gallant  deeds  of  officers  serving 
under  him: 

General  Wayne  to  Major  Henry  Lee  ("  Light- Horse  Harry"), 

Camp  Near  White  Plains 
New  York  20th  July  1778 

Dear  Major, — I  wished  you  to  have  come  in  for  a  share  of  the 
Glory  of  the  28th  Ultimo —  Col  Butler  wanted  you  much —  The 
Enemy's  Horse  made  a  Charge  in  force  upon  his  Reg't  Consisting 
of  200  men — supported  by  the  first  Regiment  of  Guards — he  sus- 
tained the  shock  broke  them  &  pursued  both  horse  &  foot  the  Latter 
having  been  thrown  into  Disorder  by  the  former  Running  through 
them — here  was  a  field  for  you  to  act  in —  Butler  had  no  horse 
near  to  Improve  the  Advantage— &  Gen' I  Lee — but  soft,  he  is  now 
in  Arrest  &  from  present  Appearances  will  not  Continue  long  in 
the  Service — a  note  from  him  to  a  Mr  Collins  printer  of  the  Jersey 
paper — Savours  of  Insanity  or  flows  from  a  Worse  Cause —  We  are 
drawing  near  the  Enemy's  Lines — their  fleet  is  blocked  up  by  two 
French  Men  of  War  of  the  Line  and  a  Number  of  frigates — the  Cork 
fleet  with  provisions  for  Clintons  Army  is  yet  out — the  Enemy  are 
already  on  Short  Allowance — come  then  and  Assist  us  to  Besiege 
them. 

While  Wayne's  force  was  thus  engaged  with  Simcoe's 
dragoons,  the  main  English  force  from  having  been  on 

11 


146  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

the  defensive  now  became  the  assailants.  At  first  the 
force  in  front  of  Wayne  was  simply  a  covering  party, 
supposed  by  him  to  have  consisted  of  about  two  thou- 
sand men,  but  it  rapidly  increased  in  numbers.  Wayne 
looked  round  for  the  reinforcements  which  had  been 
promised  him,  but  was  surprised  to  find  that  the  rest  of 
Lee's  command  was  in  full  retreat,  leaving  him  to  shift 
for  himself,  and  placing  him  in  great  danger  of  being 
surrounded.  With  great  difficulty  he  made  his  way 
through  the  swamp  and  the  woods  until  he  reached  the 
parsonage,  just  in  advance  of  the  "  Tennent  Church,'* 
and  on  the  southern  side  of  the  road  leading  to  Free- 
hold, where  he  found  all  the  troops  which  were  to  have 
supported  him  falling  back  by  General  Lee's  order. 
There  he  met  General  Washington,  amazed  at  the  re- 
treat of  the  advance  corps  and  angry  beyond  restraint 
with  General  Lee  who  had  ordered  it.  The  enemy, 
whose  whole  force  had  by  this  time  faced  about,  were  in 
-full  pursuit,  and  the  commander-in-chief  had,  it  is  said, 
but  a  quarter  of  an  hour  to  make  such  a  disposition  of 
his  force  as  would  check  them.  Washington's  presence 
and  example  at  once  stopped  the  retreat.  Danger 
seems  to  have  aroused  all  his  energies.  With  the  true 
instinct  of  a  great  general,  he  rallied  his  troops  at 
once,  directing  Wayne,  who  was  near  him,  to  form  two 
trusty  regiments  instantly  and  check  the  assault  of  the 
enemy,  while  he  would  hasten  to  the  rear  and  bring 
forward  the  main  portion  of  the  army  to  support  him. 
The  regiments  which  were  called  upon  at  this  critical 
moment,  one  of  the  most  critical  in  the  history  of  the 
Revolution,  to  defend  this  most  dangerous  post  of 
honor,  were  those  of  Colonel  Walter  Stewart  of  the 


MONMOUTH.  147 


Thirteenth  Pennsylvania,  Colonel  William  Irvine  of 
the  Seventh  Pennsylvania,  and  Colonel  Thomas  Craig 
of  the  Third  Pennsylvania,  aided  by  a  Maryland  and 
a  Virginia  regiment.  These  held  the  advance  post 
at  this  period  of  the  battle,  the  well-known  orchard  of 
Monmouth,  until  the  reinforcements  which  made  up  the 
second  line  arrived.  There  were  hills  on  each  side  of 
this  orchard,  which  were  at  once  occupied  by  these  re- 
inforcements ;  that  on  the  right  was  held  by  Greene 
with  Knox's  artillery,  that  on  the  left  by  Stirling.  The 
batteries  on  both  these  hills  enfiladed  the  English  army 
on  the  right  and  the  left,  while  the  withering  fire  of 
Wayne's  command  in  front  rendered  further  advance 
well-nigh  impossible.  The  British  grenadiers  with  their 
left  on  Freehold  and  the  guards  on  their  right  had  driven 
Lee's  advance  to  the  position  near  the  parsonage  which 
Wayne  now  occupied.  Crossing  a  fence  which  lay  in 
their  front,  they  advanced  to  the  attack  of  Wayne's 
position  with  dauntless  courage,  first  on  the  right  and 
then  on  the  left,  but  were  repulsed  in  both  cases  with 
great  loss.  Finally  the  guards,  officered  by  the  sons  of 
the  noblest  English  families,  who  had  for  more  than 
eight  months  given  the  tone  to  fashionable  dissipation 
while  Philadelphia  was  occupied  by  the  British  army, 
and  had  taught  their  admirers  there  among  the  ladies 
to  look  with  contempt  upon  the  brave  yeomen  who  were 
suffering  the  pains  of  nakedness  and  hunger  at  Valley 
Forge,  were  at  last  to  meet  foemen  worthy  of  their 
steel.  Their  commanding  officer,  Colonel  Monckton, 
the  brother  of  Lord  Galway,  was  fully  convinced  that 
the  task  assigned  to  this  corps  cTelite  was  one  that 
would  test  to  the  utmost  those  soldierly  qualities  for 


148  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

which  the  grenadiers  and  guards  had  gained  so  great 
renown.  The  guards  having  been  formed  for  a  bayo- 
net-charge, their  colonel  made  them  a  short  speech,  in 
which  he  urged  them,  by  all  the  motives  which  appeal 
to  a  soldier's  pride  and  his  esprit  de  corps,  to  charge 
home.  So  near  were  they  to  the  American  line  that  it 
is  said  that  every  word  of  his  speech  was  heard  there, 
and  probably  it  did  as  much  to  inspire  Wayne's  men 
with  courage  and  determination  as  it  did  those  to  whom 
it  was  addressed.  They  then  rushed  on  with  a  furious 
charge,  hoping  to  drive  their  enemies  back  by  the 
bayonet.  Waiting  until  they  approached  quite  closely, 
they  were  met  with  a  withering  fire  of  musketry  from 
Wayne's  regiments,  which  killed  not  only  the  colonel 
(the  speech-maker),  who  bravely  led  them  on,  but  many 
of  his  officers.  The  column  was  driven  back  in  the 
utmost  confusion.  How  complete  was  this  repulse  is 
shown  by  the  inability  of  the  guards  to  rescue  from 
Wayne's  men  the  lifeless  body  of  their  commander, 
although  they  made  the  most  frantic  efforts  to  recover 
it.  The  battle  raged  for  hours  after  this  fruitless  at- 
tempt to  penetrate  Wayne's  column,  and  at  last  the 
enemy,  finding  that  they  could  make  no  impression  upon 
the  American  army,  and  utterly  exhausted  by  the  heat 
of  the  day,  retired  in  confusion  and  with  great  loss. 

The  repulse  of  the  bayonet-charge  of  the  British 
guards  and  grenadiers,  forming  the  elite  of  their  infantry, 
and  regarded  by  their  countrymen  ever  since  the  days 
of  Crecy  and  Agincourt  as  the  most  formidable  war- 
riors in  the  world  when  armed  with  such  a  weapon,  by 
a  body  of  American  yeomen,  most  of  whom  were  Penn- 
sylvanians,  under  a  Pennsylvanian  general,  men  who 


MONMOUTH.  149 


were  inferior  in  numbers  and  imperfect  in  discipline, 
who  had  just  been  rallied  after  an  ignominious  retreat, 
and  were  engaged  in  battle  for  the  first  time  on  that  day, 
must  be  considered  in  the  progress  of  the  Revolution  as 
a  prodigious  historical  event.  To  many  the  orchard  at 
Monmouth  seemed  a  second  Thermopylae,  and  Wayne 
was  spoken  of  as  a  modern  Leonidas.  Wayne's  repu- 
tation as  a  military  leader  resting  on  such  a  basis  was 
recognized  both  by  the  friends  and  by  the  foes  of  the 
patriot  cause  as  one  of  the  great  forces  in  the  Revo- 
lutionary contest.  There  has  probably  never  been  in 
our  history  such  a  spontaneous  fervor  in  the  expression 
of  grateful  hearts  for  any  man's  services,  until  we  come 
to  the  enthusiasm  with  which  the  crushing  blows  dealt 
by  Grant,  Sherman,  and  Sheridan  to  the  armed  forces 
of  the  rebellion  were  welcomed.  The  commander-in- 
chief  in  his  report  to  Congress  speaks  of  his  deeds  in 
that  measured  phrase  always  characteristic  of  Wash- 
ington. "  I  cannot  forbear,"  he  says,  "  mentioning  Briga- 
dier-General Wayne,  whose  good  conduct  and  bravery 
through  the  whole  action  deserves  particular  commen- 
dation." There  was  but  one  dissentient  voice  among 
his  countrymen,  and  that  came  from  his  commander, 
General  Lee,  a  good  witness,  at  least,  of  the  fearful 
odds  against  him.  He  says  in  a  letter  to  Robert 
Morris,  "The  force  opposed  to  the  American  Army 
was  the  whole  flower  of  the  British  Army,  Grenadiers, 
Light  Infantry,  Cavalry,  &  Artillery  amounting  in  all  to 
7000  men.  By  the  temerity  &  folly  and  contempt  of 
orders  of  General  Wain  [sic]  we  found  ourselves  en- 
gaged in  the  most  extensive  plain  in  America,  separated 
from  our  main  body  the  distance  of  eight  miles,"  etc. 


150  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

We  may  be  quite  sure  that  there  were  few  among 
the  patriots  who  were  inclined  to  find  fault  with  Gen- 
eral Wayne  because  of  his  "  temerity  &  folly"  at  the 
battle  of  Monmouth.  The  effect  on  the  public  mind 
of  that  battle,  although  the  Americans  could  exhibit 
no  trophies  of  victory,  was  instantaneous,  deep,  and 
abiding. 

It  cheered  that  portion  of  the  people  who  are  often 
patriotic  in  their  instincts  but  are  apt  to  become  timid 
and  desponding  at  the  first  reverses,  for  it  helped  to 
convince  them  that  thenceforth  in  the  struggle  our 
armies,  when  properly  led,  could  do  great  things  against 
troops  hitherto  supposed  to  be  superior  to  them  in 
equipment  and  discipline.  This  hesitation  in  meeting 
our  enemies  in  the  open  field  had  had,  as  the  history  of 
the  Revolution  clearly  shows,  up  to  this  time,  a  control- 
ling influence  in  the  councils  of  war  called  together  by 
Washington.  He  was  taught  by  the  results  of  this 
battle  that  the  oftener  he  "acted  the  general,"  as  Wayne 
called  it,  the  more  likely  would  permanent  success 
follow.  Hence  Wayne's  example  becomes  a  great 
teaching  force  in  our  military  history,  for  it  destroyed 
the  charm  of  invincibility  which  in  the  eyes  of  many 
always  attended  the  British  soldiery.  And  it  taught  a 
still  more  important  lesson  to  all  in  authority,  invalu- 
able to  a  people  in  arms  against  oppression, — that  of 
self-confidence. 

For  our  purpose  it  is  not  worth  while  to  go  into  the 
controversy  concerning  General  Lee's  conduct  at  the 
battle  of  Monmouth.  He  was  tried  for  disobedience 
of  orders  in  not  attacking  the  enemy  on  the  28th  of 
June   as   he   had   been  ordered,  and  for  misbehavior 


MONMOUTH. 


151 


before  the  enemy  in  making  an  unnecessary  retreat. 
He  was  found  guilty  on  both  charges,  and  in  defend- 
ing himself  before  the  court  and  in  the  newspapers  of 
the  day  he  made  charges  against  three  officers,  which 
brought  him  challenges  to  duels  from  each  of  them : 
one  from  the  illustrious  Von  Steuben,  to  whose  per- 
sistent training  of  the  troops  at  Valley  Forge  during 
the  winter  amidst  every  kind  of  discouragement  much 
of  the  success  of  Monmouth  was  doubtless  due ;  one 
from  Colonel  Laurens,  an  aide-de-camp  of  General 
Washington,  who  sought  to  avenge  the  insulting  and 
outrageous  abuse  of  which  his  chief  had  been  made 
the  object  by  General  Lee  ;  and  one  from  General 
Wayne,  whose  action  in  the  battle,  and  especially  his 
alleged  disobedience  of  orders,  had  been  very  harshly 
criticised  by  General  Lee.  Only  one  of  these  proposed 
duels,  however,  took  place,  that  in  which  Colonel  Lau- 
rens was  the  challenger,  and  in  which  Lee  was  slightly 
wounded.  Lee's  quarrel  with  Wayne  could  not  be  pub- 
licly carried  on  while  the  latter  was  surrounded  by 
the  halo  of  glory  which  encompassed  him  after  Mon- 
mouth, and  especially  after  Stony  Point,  when  Lee 
became  the  most  enthusiastic  admirer  of  his  former 
adversary;  and  as  to  Von  Steuben,  it  has  not  been 
possible  to  discover  how  his  wounded  honor  was  healed, 
but  there  was,  it  is  believed,  no  duel. 

The  most  graphic  account  of  the  battle  of  Mon- 
mouth which  has  been  printed  is  contained  in  a  letter 
from  Wayne  to  his  wife,  and  in  one  to  his  friend  Mr. 
Peters,  Secretary  of  the  Board  of  War,  both  of  which 
we  give. 


152  MAJOR-GENERAL   WAYNE. 

General  Wayne  to  Mrs.  Wayne. 

Spottswood  1st  July  1778 

Dear  Polly, — On  Sunday  the  28th  June  our  flying  army  came  in 
view  of  the  Enemy  about  Eight  O' Clock  in  the  Morning — when  I 
was  Ordered  to  Advance  and  Attack  them  with  a  few  men — the 
Remainder  of  the  Army  under  Gen'l  Lee  was  to  have  supported 
me —  We  accordingly  Advanced,  and  Received  a  Charge  from  the 
British  horse  and  Infantry  which  we  soon  repulsed,  however  our 
Gen'l  thought  proper  to  retreat  in  place  of  Advancing — without  our 
firing  a  single  shot —  The  Enemy  followed  in  force — which  Ren- 
dered it  very  Difficult  for  the  small  force  I  had  to  gain  the  main  body 
being  Often  hard  pushed,  and  frequently  surrounded —  After  fall- 
ing back  about  a  mile  we  met  His  Excellency — who  was  surprised 
at  our  Retreat,  knowing  that  Officers  as  well  as  men  were  in  high 
Spirits  and  wished  for  Nothing  more  than  to  be  faced  about  and 
meet  the  British  fire. —  He  Accordingly  Ordered  me  to  keep  post 
where  he  met  us  with  Stewarts  &  Livingstons  Regiments  and  a 
Virginia  Reg't  then  under  my  Command  with  two  pieces  of  Artil- 
lery and  to  keep  them  in  play  until  he  had  an  opportunity  of  form- 
ing the  Remainder  of  the  Army  and  Restoring  Order —  We  had 
but  just  taken  post  when  the  Enemy  began  their  attack  with  Horse 
&  foot  &  Artillery.  The  fire  of  their  whole  united  force  soon 
Obliged  us  after  a  Severe  Conflict  to  give  way — when  a  Most  tre- 
mendous Cannonade  Commenced  on  both  sides,  Continuing  near 
four  Hours  without  Ceasing —  During  this  time  every  possible 
Exertion  was  made  by  His  Excellency  and  the  Other  Generals  to 
Spirit  up  the  Troops  and  to  prepare  them  for  an  Other  tryal —  The 
Enemy  began  to  Advance  again  in  a  heavy  Column  against  which 
I  ordered  some  [torn  out]  Advanced  with  some  of  my  Or  [torn  out] 
to  meet  them.  The  Action  was  Exceedingly  warm  and  well  Main- 
tained on  each  Side  for  a  Considerable  time —  At  Length  Victory 
Declared  for  us,  the  British  Courage  failed  and  was  forced  to  give 
place  to  American  Valour — 

We  Encamped  on  the  field  of  Battle  where  we  found  among  the 
Dead  and  Wounded  a  Number  of  the  first  Officers  of  the  British 
Army —  We  have  taken  a  Great  Many  Prisoners — and  their  men 
are  coming  in  to  us  by  Hundreds  of  a  Day — 

In  this  Affair  we  lost  some  brave  Officers  killed  and  Wounded 


MONMOUTH.  153 


with  many  Other  Officers  and  men — on  the  part  of  the  Enemy — the 
Slaughter  has  been  great  and  [torn  out]  their  Grenadiers  Infantry 
and  Guards.  Their  Loss  is  not  less  than  twelve  or  fifteen  Hun- 
dred men  killed  &  Wounded 

Every  General  &  other  officer  (one  excepted)  did  Every  thing 
that  could  be  expected  on  this  Great  Occasion,  but  Pennsylvania 
shewed  the  Road  to  Victory —  Adieu  my  Dear  Polly.  Send  this 
to  my  poor  old  Mother  &  tell  her  that  I  am  safe  &  Well. 

Kiss  our  Little  People  for  me. 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

[Mrs.  Wayne.] 

General  Wayne  to  Mr.  Peters,  Secretary  of  War. 

Paramus  12th  July  1778 

Dear  Sir, — We  have  been  in  a  perpetual  move  ever  since  we 
Crossed  the  Delaware  until  yesterday — when  we  arrived  here  and 
shall  be  stationary  for  a  few  days — in  Order  to  Recruit  a  little  from 
the  hard  fatigue  we  have  experienced  in  Marching  through  Deserts, 
burning  sands  &c.  &c.  &c. 

The  Enemy  sore  from  the  Action  of  the  28th  Ultimo  seem 
Inclined  to  Rest  awhile.  They  are  now  in  three  Divisions,  one  on 
Long  Island — one  on  Staten  Island  and  the  Other  at  New  York — 

The  Victory  of  that  day  turns  out  to  be  much  more  Considerable 
than  at  first  expected.  Col  Butler  who  remained  on  the  Ground 
for  two  or  three  days  after  the  Action  says  that  upwards  of  three 
Hundred  British  had  been  buried  by  us  on  the  field  and  numbers 
Discovered  every  Day  in  the  Woods  where  the  action  commenced 
exclusive  of  those  buried  by  the  Enemy — which  was  not  short  of  a 
Hundred — so  that  by  the  most  Moderate  Computation  their  Killed 
and  Wounded  must  be  full  fifteen  Hundred  men  of  the  flower  of  their 
army —  Among  them  are  Numbers  of  the  Richest  blood  of  Eng- 
land—  Tell  the  PhiPa  ladies  that  the  heavenly,  sweet,  pretty  red 
Coats — the  accomplished  Gent'n  of  the  Guards  &  Grenadiers  have 
humbled  themselves  on  the  plains  of  Monmouth 

"The  Knights  of  the  Blended  Rose"  &  "Burning  Mount"— 
have  Resigned  their  Laurels  to  Rebel  officers  who  will  lay  them  at 
the  feet  of  those  Virtuous  Daughters  of  America  who  cheerfully 
gave  up  ease  and  Affluence  in  a  city  for  Liberty  and  peace  of  mind 


154  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

in  a  Cottage1 —    A  Propos  pray  present  my  best  wishes  to  all  such 
among  which  Number  is  my  Daughter. 

Adieu  and  believe  me  yours 
Most  Sincerely, 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

[NB  We  have  not  Rec'd  the  least  Article  of  Clothing  since  you 
saw  us  at  Mount  Joy  and  are  now naked) 

[Rich'd  Peters,  Esq.] 

The  duty  of  the  army  for  nearly  eighteen  months 
after  the  battle  of  Monmouth  consisted  in  ingloriously 
watching  the  enemy  at  New  York  lest  they  should  sally 
forth  and  make  destructive  raids  in  Jersey  or  should 
attempt  to  secure  possession  of  the  Highlands  of  the 
Hudson.  To  retain  these  strongholds  was  of  capital 
importance,  for  should  the  British  occupy  in  large 
force  the  passes  in  the  vicinity  of  West  Point,  conve- 
nient communication  between  the  New  England  Colo- 
nies and  those  to  the  west  of  the  Hudson  would  be 
cut  off.  The  American  army  therefore  was  drawn  up  in 
the  form  of  a  segment  of  a  circle,  extending  from  Middle- 
brook,  in  New  Jersey,  to  the  Delaware  on  the  south,  and 
on  the  north  towards  Long  Island  Sound.  For  many 
months  it  performed  the  distasteful  but  necessary  task 
of  guarding  this  widely-extended  line.  Its  numbers,  of 
course,  were  too  small  to  do  this  work  effectually,  and 
the  duty  was  extremely  harassing  to  the  troops  engaged 
in  it.  The  British  in  New  York,  cooped  up  in  their 
narrow  quarters,  also  chafed  at  their  enforced  inactivity. 
They  made  occasionally  destructive  sorties  into  Jersey 

1  This  is  an  allusion  to  the  part  taken  by  the  British  officers,  while 
occupying  Philadelphia,  in  the  grand  festival  of  "  The  Meschianza." 


MONMOUTH.  155 


and  Connecticut, — fruitless,  it  is  true,  as  far  as  military 
results  were  concerned,  but  extremely  exasperating  to 
those  who  suffered  from  them.  They  also  obtained 
possession  of  King's  Ferry  on  the  Hudson  at  the  south- 
ern extremity  of  the  Highlands,  with  the  works  erected 
at  Stony  Point  on  the  western  and  at  Verplanck's  Point 
on  the  eastern  side  of  the  river.  These  places  formed 
part  of  the  system  of  fortifying  the  Highlands  by  the 
Americans.  Hence  their  occupation  by  the  enemy  was 
regarded  by  Washington  as  a  serious  menace  to  his 
operations. 

The  first  effect  of  the  French  alliance  of  February, 
1778,  was  not,  as  many  had  hoped,  to  infuse  new  vigor 
into  the  prosecution  of  the  war.  It  was,  unfortunately, 
regarded  on  all  hands  as  decisive  of  the  question  of 
independence.  The  treaty  is  spoken  of  in  the  corre- 
spondence of  the  time  as  the  true  Declaration  of  Inde- 
pendence, and  all,  friends  and  enemy  alike,  seemed  to 
think  that  it  would  lead  to  a  speedy  settlement  of  the 
question.  Within  a  few  weeks  after  the  hope-inspiring 
battle  of  Monmouth  a  large  French  fleet  under  the 
Comte  d'Estaing,  with  four  thousand  troops  on  board, 
appeared  off  the  coast.  It  was  thought  that  the  Eng- 
lish fleet  at  Sandy  Hook  and  their  army  at  New 
York  were  at  their  mercy.  It  was  soon  found,  how- 
ever, that  there  was  not  water  enough  within  the  Hook 
to  permit  the  French  squadron  to  act  with  advantage. 
So  the  attempt  to  destroy  the  British  fleet  there  was 
given  up.  It  was  next  arranged  that  a  combined  oper- 
ation of  the  French  fleet  and  an  army  under  General 
Sullivan  should  be  undertaken  with  the  hope  of  cap- 
turing the  English  garrison  on  Rhode  Island,  or  at  least 


i5 6  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

of  compelling  it  to  evacuate  that  post.  The  attempt,  as 
is  well  known,  was  a  wretched  failure.  Whether  the  fault 
was  due  to  General  Sullivan,  or  to  the  French  admiral, 
or  to  the  storms  which  hindered  their  co-operation, 
the  result  was  worse  than  a  failure,  for  it  bred  intense 
jealousy  and  dislike  between  us  and  our  French  allies. 
The  fleet  with  its  troops  sailed  for  Boston,  and  after  a 
long  delay  there  took  part  in  the  unsuccessful  siege  of 
Savannah.  In  this  way  were  the  eyes  of  our  fathers 
opened  to  the  true  value  of  this  French  alliance  for 
which  they  had  so  long  prayed,  and  to  secure  which 
they  had  professed  themselves  ready  to  make  such 
abundant  sacrifices.  It  brought  them  at  this  time 
neither  men  nor  money  nor  ships,  but  it  did  teach  them 
that  success  was,  after  all,  to  be  achieved  only  by  their 
own  efforts ;  yet  the  lesson  was  in  a  great  measure 
unheeded,  and  our  countrymen  still  preferred  to  hope 
great  things  from  the  alliance  rather  than  tax  them- 
selves and  put  in  practice  the  well-tried  maxim  that  in 
union  there  is  force.  There  seems  to  have  been  at 
this  time  in  the  army,  in  contrast  with  the  hopeful  tone 
which  prevailed  in  the  public,  a  good  deal  of  depression 
from  causes  some  of  which  are  given  in  the  following 
letter  : 

General  Wayne  to  Robert  Morris. 

Fredericksburg  5th  Oct'r  1778 
Dear  Sir, — Your  very  Polite  favour  of  the  8th  Ultimo  I  have  just 
Rec'd —  I  wish  with  you  that  it  had  been  in  your  Power  to  give  full 
Satisfaction  to  our  poor  Worthy  fellows  in  the  Article  of  Clothing 
— their  Distresses  are  great,  but  there  is  a  Distant  prospect  of  these 
Distresses  being  Alleviated  in  some  Degree,  though  not  so  amply 
nor  so  soon,  as  the  Season  &  their  wretched  Condition  Require, 
shou'd  the  Enemy  Operate  to  the  Eastward  as  from  Present  Appear- 


MONMOUTH.  157 


ances  they  Intend  it — we  shall  be  like  Mahomet  and  the  Mountain 
— if  the  Clothing  wont  Come  to  us — we  will  go  to  the  Clothing — 

The  Honorable  mention  which  His  Excellency  was  pleased  to 
make  of  me  on  acct.  of  the  Action  of  Monmouth,  must  be  very 
flattering  to  a  young  soldier — Altho'  I  am  Conscious  of  not  having 
done  any  more  than  my  Duty — and  for  which  I  can  claim  no  Merit. 

When  Gen'l  Reed  was  at  Camp — I  believe  the  State  of  Penns'a 
was  Considered  to  have  but  two  Brigades  in  the  field —  I  wish  to 
put  this  matter  in  a  fair  point  of  view —  Exclusive  of  the  two  Bri- 
gades with  this  Army  (which  in  health,  Numbers  &  Discipline  are 
second  to  none  on  the  Ground)  we  have  three  Hundred  Rank  & 
file  with  Col'l  William  Butler  on  the  Mowhawk  River,  five  Inde- 
pendent Companies  at  West  Point  on  Hudsons  River,  Upwards  of 
three  Hundred  Rank  &  file  with  Col.  Brodhead  at  Pittsburg — and 
Col'l  Hartley's  Regiment  at  Sunbury  which  was  totally  Raised  in 
Penns'a  and  either  is  or  ought  to  be  Adopted  by  the  State — so  that 
Counting  only  upon  two  Brigades  is  unjust  and  ungenerous — as  the 
troops  I  have  now  mentioned  would  if  together,  make  a  stronger 
Effective  Brigade  than  any  in  the  Service — add  to  this  that  all  the 
troops  we  have  in  the  field  are  Enlisted  during  the  War,  whilst  the 
troops  of  almost  every  Other  State  are  only  Engag'd  for  three  years 
or  Draughted  for  Eight  months — so  that  by  the  first  of  Jan'y  we  shall 
have  more  Continental  troops  in  the  field  than  any  other  State  in 
the  Whole  Confederacy — but  not  so  many  Gen* I  Officers  having  but 
One  Brig'r  General  for  the  three  Brigades — 

I  must  acknowledge  that  I  am  much  pleased  to  find  that  Gen'l 
Hand  was  absolutely  appointed  for  N.  Carol' a  for  was  he  to  take 
a  Command  in  the  Penns'a  Line  we  should  Inevitably  lose  Col'l 
Irvine — who  was  a  senior  Col'l  to  Hand —  Matters  being  thus 
situated  is  it  not  an  Injury  to  Penns'a  not  to  have  the  Benefit  of  its 
Proportion  of  Gen'l  Officers  which  ought  to  be  at  least  three  Briga- 
diers if  the  number  of  Troops  is  the  Criterion  to  Determine  by  and 
is  it  not  a  prejudice  to  those  Officers  who  are  Entitled  to  promo- 
tion to  be  so  long  neglected.  If  I  am  Rightly  Instructed — there  is  a 
Resolve  of  Congress  Reserving  to  prisoners  their  Rank  and  Pro- 
motion in  the  Line  as  soon  as  exchanged — if  this  is  the  case  I  doubt 
not  but  Col'l  Irvine's  Merit,  Capacity  &  Conduct  as  an  Officer  &  a 
Gent'n  will  Entitle  him  to  that  Rank  which  he  would  have  held  had 


158  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

he  not  unfortunately  been  made  a  Prisoner  he  was  a  Senior  Col'l  to 
either  De  Haas  or  Hand  I  have  Dwelt  the  Longer  on  this  Subject 
as  I  have  an  Intended  Resignation  as  soon  as  the  Campaign  ends  of 
too  many  of  our  best  Officers —  I  am  Confident  that  if  some  of  the 
Principal  Officers  Lead  the  way  that  the  Contagion  in  our  Line  will  be 
very  General  having  no  Inducement  to  Continue  in.  Indeed  they  seem 
Desirous  of  Catching  at  any  Pretext  for  Quitting  a  service  which  has 
or  soon  will  Reduce  them  to  beggary  &  want  leaving  but  Rank  or 
love  of  Country  which  will  not  afford  them  bread  at  an  other  day — 
for  my  own  part  I  realy  should  have  Retired  to  my  Sabine  fields 
before  now  but  for  fear  of  the  ill  Consequence  of  the  Example 
When  I  once  see  matters  in  a  more  fixed  state  I  may  then  be  per- 
mitted to  Retire  without  the  Imputation  of  want  of  Patriotism  or 
Courage — which  period  is  most  anxiously  wished  for  by  your  Most 
Ob't  &  very  Hum'l  Ser't 

Ant'y  Wayne. 
[Hon'bl  Rob't  Morris.] 

While  all  the  Colonies  suffered  from  the  illusions 
which  reliance  upon  the  French  had  fostered,  and  were 
slower  during  the  last  four  years  of  the  war  in  raising 
money  or  recruiting  troops  and  providing  for  them 
than  during  the  first  three  years,  the  burden  of  such 
a  method  of  conducting  military  operations  was  felt 
with  peculiar  severity  in  Pennsylvania.  Massachusetts 
not  only  had  abundant  harvests,  but  in  her  seaports 
was  transacted  an  opulent  commerce,  and  thus  she  was 
comparatively  prosperous  ;  Virginia  at  this  time  had 
on  the  shores  of  her  navigable  rivers  large  stores  of 
tobacco,  easily  convertible  into  money  when  they  fell 
into  hands  not  hostile ;  but  Pennsylvania  was,  as  we 
have  said,  cut  off  in  a  great  measure  from  commerce 
with  the  rest  of  the  world. 

In  August,  1778,  what  remained  of  the  three  Penn- 
sylvania brigades  was  formed  into  two,  owing  to  the 


MONMOUTH.  j  59 


small  number  of  recruits  who  were  enlisted  to  fill  the 
ranks  of  the  old  regiments.  These  brigades  were 
composed  of  four  regiments  each.  The  following  is  a 
list  of  the  field  officers :  Colonels,  Chambers,  W.  Stew- 
art, Thomas  Craig,  L.  Cadwalader,  Johnston,  Magaw, 
W.  Irvine,  and  Broadhead ;  Lieutenant -Colonels,  T. 
Robinson,  Miller,  Williams,  William  Butler,  Frazer, 
Harmar,  Hay,  and  Bayard;  Majors^  Moore,  Murray, 
Lennox,  Church,  Stuart,  Talbot,  Mentges,  and  F.  Ver- 
non.1 The  list  is  interesting  as  showing  how  steadily 
the  officers  of  the  Pennsylvania  line  under  General 
Wayne  held  their  posts.  The  names  of  nearly  all  those 
we  have  given  are  familiar  for  good  conduct  at  Brandy- 
wine,  at  Paoli,  at  Germantown,  and  at  Monmouth.  So 
slow,  however,  was  the  progress  of  recruiting,  that  in 
October,  1778,  the  first  brigade  still  needed  eight  hun- 
dred and  thirteen  men,  and  the  second  nine  hundred 
and  fifty,  to  complete  their  rolls. 

In  common  with  the  whole  army  encamped  at  Middle- 
brook  during  the  winter  of  1778-79,  the  Pennsylvania 
line  suffered  almost  beyond  endurance,  not  only  from 
a  want  of  clothing  and  of  supplies  of  all  kinds,  but  also 
from  the  payment  of  their  wages  in  money  of  merely  a 
nominal  value.  Much  lack  of  discipline  grew  out  of 
"the  dirt  and  nakedness  of  the  soldiers,"  and  constant 
discontent  on  the  part  of  the  officers,  aggravated  by 
disputes  concerning  relative  rank ;  in  short,  there  was 
a  state  of  suffering  closely  akin  to  that  through  which 
the  army  had  passed  the  winter  before  at  Valley 
Forge.     Although  it  was  hoped  that  the  trouble  would 


See  Appendix. 


160  MAJOR-GENERAL   WAYNE. 

be  removed  in  a  great  measure  by  the  appointment  of 
General  Greene  as  quartermaster-general  in  place  of 
General  Mifflin,  the  same  complaints  were  made.  The 
true  source  of  the  embarrassment  of  the  army  service 
was  the  want  of  money  and  of  credit.  There  was  also 
a  pernicious  infatuation  that  peace  could  be  attained 
without  further  effort  on  the  part  of  the  Americans 
themselves.  To  what  indifference  this  blind  confidence 
led  those  at  the  seat  of  government  is  clearly  pointed 
out  in  the  Wayne  correspondence.  He  had  sent  two 
of  his  most  distinguished  officers,  Colonel  Walter  Stew- 
art and  Colonel  William  Irvine,  while  the  army  was  in 
winter  quarters,  to  represent  to  the  Assembly  the  un- 
fortunate condition  of  things,  hitherto  without  remedy, 
in  regard  to  the  pay  and  rank  of  those  serving  in 
the  Pennsylvania  line,  and  to  ask  for  some  relief  from 
the  hardships  from  which  the  private  soldier  suffered. 
A  letter  of  Colonel  Stewart's,  like  one  of  Washington's 
written  about  the  same  time,  describes  the  demoraliza- 
tion which  had  seized  upon  men  whom  they  met  in 
Philadelphia  whose  duty  it  was  to  find  means  to  sup- 
port the  Revolutionary  contest. 

The  picture  of  society  in  Philadelphia  at  that  time 
as  drawn  by  General  Washington  is  suggestive  of  an 
anarchical  condition  of  things.  "  Idleness,  dissipation, 
&  extravagance,"  writes  he,  "seem  to  have  laid  fast 
hold  of  the  generality,  and  peculation,  speculation,  & 
an  insatiable  thirst  of  riches  to  have  gotten  the  better 
of  every  other  consideration,  and  of  almost  every  order 
of  men.  .  .  .  The  momentous  concerns  of  the  em- 
pire, a  great  &  accumulating  debt,  ruined  finances,  de- 
preciated money,  &  a  want  of  credit,  which  is  the  want 


MONMOUTH.  161 


of  everything,  are  but  secondary  considerations,  and 
postponed  by  Congress  from  time  to  time,  as  if  their 
affairs  wore  the  most  promising  aspect.  The  paper  is 
daily  sinking  fifty  per  cent.,  and  yet  an  Assembly,  a 
concert,  a  dinner  or  a  supper  which  costs  from  ^200  to 
^300  does  not  only  take  men  off  from  acting,  but  even 
of  thinking  of  this  business." 

In  a  letter  of  Colonel  Stewart  to  General  Wayne,  he 
says,  "  How  much  are  we  disappointed  in  respect  to 
the  representation  in  Congress ;  the  pleasing  ideas  we 
had  formed  of  it  are  now  no  more.  We  unfortunately 
find  a  real  set  of  Caitiffs  have  supplied  their  places,  and 
what  still  adds  to  my  Chagrin  is  that  I  am  told  that 
Parson  Duffield  is  to  supply  the  place  of  Edward 
Biddle  who  spurned  at  his  colleagues  and  refused  to 
serve  among  them.  Nothing  but  party  reigns  in 
different  bodies.  Every  thing  confirms  me  in  the 
opinion  that  the  enemy  have  been  long  enough  in  this 
country. 

"  Permit  me  to  say  a  little  of  the  dress,  manners,  & 
customs  of  the  town's  people.  In  regard  to  the  first, 
great  alterations  have  taken  place  since  I  was  here.  It 
is  all  gaiety,  and  from  what  I  can  observe,  every  lady 
and  gentleman  endeavors  to  outdo  the  other  in  splen- 
dor &  show.  The  manners  of  the  ladies  are  likewise 
much  changed.  They  have  really  in  a  great  measure 
lost  that  native  innocence  which  was  their  former 
characteristic  &  supplied  its  place  with  what  they 
call  an  Easy  behavior.  .  .  .  The  manner  of  entertaining 
in  this  place  has  likewise  undergone  a  change.  You 
cannot  conceive  any  thing  more  elegant  than  the  pres- 
ent taste.     You  will  hardly  dine  at  a  table  but  they 


1 62  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

present  you  with  three  courses  &  Each  of  them  in 
the  most  elegant  manner.  'Tis  really  flattering  to 
the  officers  of  the  Army,  the  attention  paid  them  by 
the  people.  I  have  heard  many  of  them  mention  it. 
We,  I  assure  you,  have  tickets  [invitations]  in  general 
for  five  or  six  days  forward.  God  knows  we  deserve 
it.  Much  have  we  suffered  while  these  people  were 
enjoying  all  the  luxury  and  ease  of  life." 

Such  was  Philadelphia,  demoralized  under  the  rule 
of  Arnold,  after  the  evacuation  of  the  British  army, 
and  to  a  Congress  and  a  State  Legislature  with  such 
surroundings  Wayne  went  in  the  winter  of  1778-79  to 
plead  the  cause  of  his  "  naked  soldiers." 

Wayne  determined  to  appeal  to  the  State  authorities 
until  the  grievances  should  be  redressed.  He  writes  to 
General  Reed,  President,  28th  December,  1778.  After 
complaining  that  his  officers  are  suffering  for  want  of 
clothing,  he  goes  on  to  say, — 

"  You  will  perhaps  ask  why  these  officers  did  not  purchase  clothing 
for  themselves.  I  answer  for  obvious  reasons  among  others  the 
depreciation  of  our  money  is  not  the  least  but  the  real  cause.  Con- 
gress long  ago  passed  a  resolve,  recommending  to  the  several  States 
to  furnish  these  officers  not  only  with  clothing,  but  all  other  neces- 
saries, at  a  moderate  rate  and  in  proportion  to  their  pay.  In  conse- 
quence of  this  Resolve,  a  quantity  of  clothing  was  purchased  by  the 
State  of  Penn'a  for  that  purpose  about  this  time  twelve-month, 
and  the  officers  were  made  to  believe  it  would  be  sent  to  camp, 
ready  made  up,  agreeable  to  the  returns  and  measures  sent  for  the 
purpose.  In  this  they  have  been  egregiously  deceived.  Not  a  change 
of  uniform  has  come  to  camp  and  if  any  officer  or  officers  have 
been  furnished  with  clothing,  it  is  not  those  who  now  are  and  always 
have  been  doing  their  duty  in  the  field,  who  are  not  callous  to 
their  sufferings,  but  are  conscious  of  meriting  some  attention  from 
their  State  although  they  have  not,  as  yet,  experienced  any.     The 


MONMOUTH.  163 


officers  of  other  States  are  supplied  with  almost  every  necessary 
suitable  for  a  gentleman  and  a  soldier  at  a  moderate  cost,  that  is 
at  less  than  one  sixth  part  of  what  they  (the  Penn'a  officers)  are 
obliged  to  pay  for  articles  they  can't  possibly  do  without —  This 
discrimination  among  the  officers  fighting  in  the  same  cause  and 
serving  in  the  same  Army,  gives  a  sensation  much  better  felt  than 
expressed. 

"I  know  it  must  give  you  much  concern  to  hear  a  repetition  of 
these  grievances,  and  the  more  so  to  know  that  they  are  but  too  just. 
Give  me  leave  to  assure  you  that  whatever  your  feelings  may  be 
on  the  occasion,  mine  are  not  less,  but  rather  heightened  by  a  con- 
stant view  of  the  hardships  and  distress  which  gentlemen  are  hourly 
exposed  to  who  deserve  better  treatment.  ...  If  something  effect- 
ual is  not  done  forthwith  they  must  be  permitted  to  go  home  and 
leave  the  men  unofficered.  Should  that  unfortunately  be  the  case 
I  have  but  too  much  ground  to  believe  that  a  very  great  proportion 
of  them  will  never  return  to  this  army  again.  I  have  already  ob- 
served that  the  subject  must  be  ungrateful,  but  it  is  a  duty  which  I 
owe  to  my  country — to  myself  and  the  officers  whom  I  have  the 
honor  to  command,  to  represent  their  well  grounded  complaints, 
based  upon  facts  which  materially  concern  the  honor  of  Penn'a,  and 
the  good  of  the  service  in  general.  I  have  full  confidence  that  you, 
Sir,  will  lay  the  whole  matter  before  the  Legislature  of  the  State 
and  give  it  that  countenance  which  you  think  it  merits. 

"I  neither  ask  nor  wish  for  any  thing  on  my  own  account,  and 
wish  for  nothing  more  than  an  opportunity  of  returning  to  my 
Sabine  fields  with  safety  to  my  country  &  honor  to  myself,  and 
am  determined  to  seize  the  first  favorable  opportunity  to  put  that 
wish  into  execution. 

"  I  am  &c, 

"  Anth'y  Wayne." 

President  Reed  writes  in  reply  on  January  23, 
making  various  excuses  for  the  non-delivery  of  the 
clothing,  which  amount  to  this :  "  that  the  State  had 
ordered  the  articles  to  be  sent,  and  will  try  to  discover 
why  none  of  the  shirts  will  fit,  and  why  the  blue  color 


1 64  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

of  the  cloth  has  turned  brown  and  white."  It  seems 
to  be  a  repetition  of  the  old  story  of  the  "  knavery  of 
contractors."  He  tells  Wayne  that  such  was  the  rapid 
increase  of  price  demanded  by  our  traders  that  the 
estimate  of  the  cost  of  two  hundred  suits  of  clothes 
for  officers  was  found  at  current  prices  to  amount  to 
sixteen  thousand  six  hundred  and  fifty  pounds. 

Wayne,  not  yet  finding  redress,  turns  to  the  Con- 
tinental authorities,  and  writes  to  Robert  Morris  and 
Robert  Knox  about  the  same  time,  "I  do  solemnly 
assure  you  that  nothing  but  the  highest  sense  of  honor 
and  true  patriotic  zeal  could  have  kept  our  officers 
in  a  service  that  promises  nothing  but  indigence  and 
want.  Their  pay  is  a  mere  vox  et  prater ea  nihil.  Such 
as  have  not  a  little  patrimony  of  their  own  (which  they 
are  breaking  in  upon  by  very  swift  degrees)  cannot 
furnish  themselves  with  clothing,  much  less  with  the 
usual  comforts  of  life  ;  so  that  unless  something  be 
speedily  &  effectually  done  a  very  large  proportion  of 
our  best  officers  must  inevitably  leave  the  service. 

"  I  have  more  than  once  expressed  a  wish  for  a  favor- 
able opportunity  of  quitting  the  army.  That  period  is 
now  drawing  nigh.  I  therefore  can  have  no  interest 
in  view  other  than  wishing  to  see  brave  and  worthy 
officers  who  have  shared  every  vicissitude  of  fortune 
with  me,  and  who  have  nobly  fought  and  bled  in  every 
field  of  action,  honorably  provided  for,  not  left  (when 
crippled  with  honest  wounds  &  grown  gray  in  arms) 
to  depend  upon  the  cold  charity  of  men  who  have 
grown  rich  under  the  shelter  of  their  protecting  swords." 

Finding  that  no  heed  was  given  to  his  written  remon- 
strances, and  that  the  officers  whom  he  had  deputed  to 


MONMOUTH.  165 


seek  redress  from  the  Assembly  of  Pennsylvania  were 
not  so  successful  as  he  had  anticipated,  Wayne  left  the 
army  for  a  short  time  and  went  to  Philadelphia  on  the 
same  errand.  The  result  of  his  appeal — and  he  is  said 
to  have  made  a  pathetic  speech  in  urging  his  claims — 
was  an  act  passed  in  March,  1779,  (1)  extending  the 
term  allowed  by  Congress  for  half-pay  during  seven 
years  to  the  duration  of  the  life  of  the  soldier,  (2)  fix- 
ing a  reasonable  price  for  the  articles  required  by  the 
soldiers,  (3)  providing  a  suitable  uniform,  and  (4)  ex- 
empting the  land  granted  to  the  soldier  from  taxation 
during  his  life. 

This  was  but  a  poor  measure  of  justice  to  those  who 
had  fought  with  so  much  constancy  and  courage  to 
defend  their  native  soil  from  occupation  by  the  enemy 
at  Brandy  wine,  at  Paoli,  and  at  Germantown,  who  had 
undergone  such  privations  at  Valley  Forge  and  had 
gained  fresh  renown  at  Monmouth ;  but,  such  as  it  was, 
it  was  received  by  the  soldiers  with  gratitude,  and  did 
much  to  allay  the  discontent  which  prevailed  in  the 
Pennsylvania  line.  This  measure,  it  will  be  observed, 
was  largely  due  to  the  personal  influence  of  General 
Wayne  with  the  Assembly.  Wayne  was  also  called 
upon  by  some  of  the  most  prominent  men  in  the  State 
to  return  and  aid  them  in  revising  the  constitution,  as 
a  remedy  for  the  evils  from  which  they  suffered.  The 
following  is  the  letter : 

General  Mifflin  and  others  to  General  Wayne, 

November  1778 
Affairs  now  wear  a  very  pleasing  aspect  in  Penn'a.     A  majority  of 
the  members  elected  to  the  Assembly  are  sincerely  &  warmly  dis- 
posed to  rescue  their  country  from  tyranny  &  contempt.     In  the 


1 66  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

County  of  Chester  there  has  been  a  double  return  of  members,  and 
a  new  election  may  perhaps  be  the  consequence  of  it.  Your  pres- 
ence in  that  County  and  in  this  City  during  this  important  con- 
juncture will  be  of  signal  service  in  many  respects  which  we  forbear 
to  mention  in  a  letter.  The  situation  of  the  Army  will  probably 
admit  of  your  absence  for  some  time  from  camp.  Let  us  therefore 
have  the  pleasure  of  seeing  you  here  as  soon  as  possible.  Matters 
are  now  approaching  a  crisis,  and  in  a  few  weeks  it  will  be  deter- 
mined whether  the  State  of  Penn'a  shall  be  happy  under  a  good 
Constitution,  or  oppressed  by  one  of  the  most  detestable  that  was 
ever  formed —  We  need  say  no  more  to  induce  you  to  be  with  us. 
Your  very  humble  servants, 

Tho's  Mifflin        John  M.  Potts 
Mark  Bird  E.  Biddle 

James  Wilson         Sam'l  Potts 

Wayne  replies  on  the  23d  expressing  his  sympathy 
with  the  views  of  these  gentlemen,  and  adds,  "The 
State  once  stood  on  high  grounds  &  I  have  the  most 
flattering  hopes  that  her  present  leaders  will  place  her 
there  again  where  the  best  wishes  and  services  of  the 
gentlemen  of  the  Pennsylvania  line  will  not  be  wanting 
in  helping  to  support  her." 

In  the  midst  of  the  delay  on  the  part  of  the  Assembly 
in  doing  justice  to  the  claims  of  the  officers  under  his 
command  for  suitable  clothing,  Wayne  was  called  upon 
to  confront  another  source  of  embarrassment,  which 
in  the  end  well-nigh  led  to  the  disbandment  of  his 
division.  This  was  the  threatened  resignation  of  all 
his  field  officers,  who  were  profoundly  irritated  by 
the  relative  rank  to  which  many  of  them  had  been 
assigned  by  the  "  new  arrangement,"  as  it  was  called, 
adopted  by  the  State  authorities  in  February,  1779. 
Before  explaining  the  nature  of  this  particular  trouble, 
we  must  consider  the  position  in  which  Wayne  himself 


MONMOUTH.  167 


was  shortly  after  placed  by  being  superseded  in  his 
command  of  the  division  of  the  Pennsylvania  line  by 
General  St.  Clair. 

General  St.  Clair  was  a  major-general  in  the  Con- 
tinental service,  and  General  Wayne  was  a  brigadier 
only.  He  had  succeeded  Wayne  in  the  command  at 
Ticonderoga,  and  had,  greatly  to  the  surprise  and  dis- 
gust of  Washington  and  the  whole  army,  evacuated 
that  post  on  the  approach  of  Burgoyne's  army  without 
making  the  resistance  which,  as  was  then  thought,  his 
resources  and  the  importance  of  the  post  demanded. 
He  was  tried  by  a  court-martial  in  November,  1778, 
and  acquitted  upon  charges  based  on  these  suspicions. 
Meantime,  he  seems  to  have  convinced  General  Wash- 
ington of  his  courage  and  capacity,  and  doubtless  the 
commander-in-chief  gratefully  remembered  St.  Clair's 
suggestion  with  regard  to  turning  the  left  of  the  British 
army  at  Trenton,  which  movement  proved  so  masterly 
and  successful  a  piece  of  strategy.  He  became,  even 
while  he  was  under  arrest  for  his  alleged  misbehavior 
at  Ticonderoga,  a  member  of  General  Washington's 
military  family,  and  as  such  (without,  however,  any 
command)  he  was  present  at  Brandywine  and  Mon- 
mouth, but  at  neither  battle,  according  to  Wayne,  was 
his  conduct  creditable.  He  had  not  previous  to  his 
appointment  as  commander  of  the  Pennsylvania  line 
ever  led  the  troops  of  that  State  to  victory,  and  he 
appears  to  have  been  very  little  known  either  to  the 
officers  or  to  the  soldiers,  who  had  been  trained  and 
made  effective  by  Wayne  for  nearly  three  years.  These 
soldiers  were  not  only  naturally  very  much  attached 
to  Wayne,  but  they  were  proud  of  the  renown  they 


1 68  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

had  achieved  under  his  command,  and  considered  them- 
selves as  forming  a  special  corps  d? elite  in  the  Revolu- 
tionary army.  When,  therefore,  it  was  found  by  Wayne 
that  not  only  did  his  great  services  at  Brandywine,  at 
Germantown,  and  at  Monmouth  avail  nothing  in  se- 
curing military  promotion,  but  that  he  was  not  even 
permitted  to  retain  the  command  in  which  he  had 
acquired  such  distinction,  he  prepared  the  following 
draught  of  a  letter,  which  it  seems  was  never  sent,  but 
which  is  valuable  now  as  showing  how  deeply  he  felt 
the  indignity  thrust  upon  him. 

After  speaking  of  the  ill-will  borne  him  by  St.  Clair, 
as  shown  by  his  sneering  criticism  of  the  finding  of 
the  court-martial  which  acquitted  him  of  misconduct 
at  Paoli,  Wayne  goes  on  : 

"  14  Oct  78 
"  I  have  other  reasons,  one  of  which  is  the  conduct  of  that  gent'n 
at  Monmouth.  An  opening  offered  at  striking  the  enemy  to  advan- 
tage. I  sent  for  the  three  Penn'a  Brigades  to  support  me ;  he  hap- 
pening to  be  near  when  my  request  arrived  peremptorily  ordered 
them  not  to  advance,  except  three  Regiments  which  with  myself 
must  inevitably  have  perished  had  the  Enemy  not  been  fortunately 
broken  and  routed  by  the  unparalleled  bravery  of  these  few  troops 
— &  contrary  to  the  most  sanguine  hopes  of  every  Spectator — 
Although  victory  declared  for  us  and  the  slaughter  was  great,  yet 
we  could  not  improve  the  advantage  from  the  disparity  of  numbers 
— of  which  we  were  deprived  either  by  the  ignorance  or  the  envy  of 
this  gentleman — 

"Add  to  this,  that  Col.  Irvine  the  gentleman  at  the  head  of  my 
brigade  is  fully  competent  to  the  charge — and  whose  feelings  I  am 
determined  not  to  hurt  by  depriving  him  of  that  command — 

"I  don't  mean  by  this  to  ask  for  promotion.  My  only  ambi- 
tion was  a  Brigadier  General's  Command  of  the  Penn'a  line,  which 
command  I  have  been  indulged  in  for  two  campaigns  and  there- 
fore thought  I  had  some  claim  to  that  honor  in  future.     But  to  be 


MONMOUTH.  169 


superseded  at  this  late  hour  by  a  man  in  whose  conduct  and  candor 
I  can  have  no  confidence  hurts  me  not  a  little — 

"This  perhaps  may  be  a  mode  of  reasoning  that  will  have  but 
little  weight.  I  solemnly  protest  that  I  have  no  such  wish.  I  only 
hoped  not  to  be  degraded,  that  is,  reduced  from  the  command  of  a 
division  to  a  brigade — and  that  under  a  man — who  for  reasons  I 
have  already  mentioned  I  can  never  submit  to.  I  have  therefore 
determined  to  return  to  domestic  life,  &  leave  the  blustering  field  of 
Mars  to  the  possession  of  gentlemen  of  more  worth,"  etc. 

As  Wayne's  passion  cooled,  he  felt  that  it  was  his 
duty,  particularly  at  a  time  when  all  his  field  officers 
were  threatening  to  resign  their  commissions  because, 
as  they  alleged,  they  had  been  unjustly  treated  in  the 
matter  of  rank,  to  show  no  open  sign  of  disaffection. 
He  therefore  applied  for  leave  of  absence  in  February, 
1779,  and,  showing  a  fine  example  of  unselfish  dis- 
interestedness and  patriotic  devotion,  asked  the  com- 
mander-in-chief that  he  might  be  appointed  to  the  com- 
mand of  a  corps  of  light  infantry  which  it  was  proposed 
to  organize  for  special  service  in  the  spring.  He 
stated  in  his  application  that,  although  he  "  sincerely 
esteemed"  General  St.  Clair,  he  had  so  much  tender- 
ness for  the  feelings  of  the  officers  "that  have  hith- 
erto commanded  the  Pennsylvania  brigades  that  I  can't 
think  of  interfering  with  them  on  that  point ;"  in  other 
words,  that  although  for  himself  he  was  willing  to  be- 
come once  more  a  brigade  commander,  he  could  not 
consent  that  his  colonels  who  had  commanded  bri- 
gades, like  Irvine  and  Butler,  should  become  colonels 
again.  General  Washington  granted  his  application  at 
once,  and  told  him  on  the  10th  of  February,  1779, 
"  My  opinion  of  your  merit  will  lead  me  cheerfully  to 
comply  with  your  request  as  soon  as  the  arrangements 


170  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

of  the  army  and  other  circumstances  permit  the  forma- 
tion of  that  corps."  Turning  over  the  division  to  St. 
Clair  in  February,  he  went  to  Philadelphia  to  work  for 
its  interests. 

But  he  never  could  forgive  the  injustice  done  his 
colonels,  although  the  wrongs  to  himself  were  forgotten. 
He  writes  concerning  it,  in  a  letter  to  General  Arm- 
strong of  the  25th  of  April,  1779,  "I  beg  to  assure  you 
that  my  only  ambition  was  to  have  continued  a  Briga- 
dier Commanding  the  Penn'a  line,  a  command  I  had 
long  enjoyed,  and  in  which  I  esteemed  myself  as  much 
honored  by  the  confidence  and  affection  of  my  officers 
and  soldiers  as  I  could  possibly  hope  from  any  in  the 
power  of  Congress  to  bestow.  Whenever  Congress 
or  his  Excellency  shall  honor  me  with  the  charge  of 
troops  without  wounding  the  feelings  of  other  officers 
I  shall  gladly  accept  it,  but  on  no  other  consideration." 

The  loyalty  of  Wayne  to  his  friends  was  a  con- 
spicuous trait  in  his  character,  and  this  example  of  it, 
insisting  that  Irvine's  and  Butler's  services  should  be 
recognized,  even  if  it  were  necessary  that  he  should 
sacrifice  his  own  position  in  order  to  accomplish  the 
object,  is  a  very  striking  one.  No  wonder,  when  his 
officers  and  men  found  that  they  had  a  man  at  their 
head  who  would  not  hesitate  to  prefer  their  interests  to 
his  own,  that  an  affectionate  and  solid  attachment  grew 
up  between  General  Wayne  and  those  under  his  com- 
mand. No  general  officer  was  ever  more  warmly  and 
deservedly  beloved  by  his  men,  or  more  readily  ob- 
tained from  them  arduous  and  devoted  service.  He 
was  unceasing,  as  we  have  seen,  in  the  midst  of  their 
privations,  in  his  efforts  to  promote  their  welfare  in 


MONMOUTH.  171 


camp,  and  in  urging  the  State  authorities  to  do  their 
duty  to  the  men  enlisted  in  the  service.  While  doing 
everything  for  them,  he  insisted  that  a  high  standard  of 
military  discipline  should  be  kept  up,  so  that  his  men 
might  be  at  all  times  truly  effective.  How  he  suc- 
ceeded, their  record  at  Brandywine,  at  Germantown,  at 
Monmouth,  and  at  Stony  Point  clearly  shows.  Wayne 
was  more  than  a  popular  military  leader.  His  exam- 
ple, according  to  Colonel  Frank  Johnston,  was  a  strong 
cohesive  force  in  the  army.  "  It  is  a  matter  of  astonish- 
ment to  me,"  says  Colonel  Johnston,  "almost  a  miracle, 
that  we  have  an  Army,  or  the  most  distant  vestige  of 
an  Army  in  being,  and  had  it  not  been  for  the  mutual 
and  happy  attachment  which  has  uniformly  existed  be- 
tween the  officers  and  the  men  I  do  not  hesitate  to  say 
that  we  should  not  have  a  single  soldier  in  the  field." 

Just  at  this  time  he  found  it  necessary  to  rebuke  some 
of  his  younger  officers  for  a  breach  of  discipline,  and 
in  doing  so  he  drew  the  line  between  what  pertained  to 
the  military  and  what  to  the  civil  ruler  in  time  of  war. 
We  may  well  weigh  his  views  on  this  subject,  for  they 
trace  clearly  the  course  which  a  general  during  a  civil 
war  in  his  own  country  should  follow.  These  letters 
seem  to  show  that  "  Mad  Anthony"  was  a  good  deal  of 
a  civilian  as  well  as  of  a  soldier.  Nothing  was  further 
from  his  thoughts  all  through  his  career  than  the  exer- 
cise of  any  illegal  or' arbitrary  authority. 

Fredricksburg  5th  Oct.  1778 
Gentlemen, — I  have  caused  Cap't  Lieu't  Henderson,  Lieu't  Mar- 
shall, Lieu't  Ball  &  Ensign  Smith  to  be  put  in  arrest  for  abusing  & 
Wounding  you  or  some  of  you  with  their  Swords. 

As  I  am  not  acquainted  with  the  Circumstances — I  wish  you  either 


172  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

to  Inform  me  by  Writing  or  otherwise  with  a  true  Account  of  the 
Whole  Affair  as  soon  as  Possible  in  Order  that  proper  means  may 
be  taken  to  bring  the  Aggressors  to  Justice —  Major  Wright  who 
Carries  this  will  bring  your  Answer  or  Conduct  you  or  either  of  you 
to  my  Quarters  at  the  House  of  Mr  Benjamin  Haverland. 
Interim  I  am  your  Most 

Ob't  Hum'l  Ser't 

Ant'y  Wayne 
To 
Henry  Birdsell 
James  Birdsell 
& 

William  March 

0ct'r9th  1778 
Honoured  Sir, — As  we  were  Ordered  this  Morning  By  the 
Court  Martial  to  be  Confined  to  our  tents,  and  are  Deprived  of  the 
Benefit  of  the  Military  Law,  wherein  we  would  have  an  Opportunity 
to  Vindicate  our  Characters  and  Clear  up  that  Heavy  Slurr  that 
Lies  upon  our  Honours,  By  Facts  which  May  Be  Misstated  to  the 
Gen'l— 

We  most  Humbly  Request  of  the  Gen'l  to  allow  us  the  Liberty 
of  the  Camp,  as  it  will  be  a  Means  to  Prevent  any  sickness  which 
May  Arise  to  us,  from  Our  Close  and  Disagreeable  Confinement — 

Or  may  it  Please  the  Gen'l  to  Withdraw  Our  arrest  and  Lett  us 
Return  to  Our  Duty,  We  will  Give  in  Security  (If  required)  For 
Our  Appearance  when  Called  upon 

We  Are  Honoured  Sir 
your  Most  Obd't  Sert's 

Jno  Henderson  Capt  Lt  3.  P.  R't 
John  Marshall  Lieut  3.  P.  R't 
B.  Wm  Ball  Lieut  3d  P.  R't 
To  Peter  Smith  Ensign  3d  P.  R't 

The  Honourable 
Brigad'r  Gen'l  Wayne — 
Present — 

Fredricksburg  i oth  Oct'r  1778 
Gentlemen, — I  have  just  seen  yours  of  yesterday  by  which  you 
Complain  of  being  Deprived  of  the  Benefit  of  Military  Law. 


MONMOUTH. 


173 


You  Certainly  can't  be  Ignorant  of  the  superior  power  of  the 
Civil  Law  over  the  Military — and  as  you  have  been  Guilty  of  exer- 
cising Military  Law  over  the  peaceable  &  Unarmed  Inhabitants 
of  this  State — the  Governor  who  is  the  Guardian  of  the  Civil  Liber- 
ties of  the  People  over  which  he  presides,  has  Demanded  you  to  be 
Given  up  to  the  Civil  power —  His  Excellency  Gen'l  Washington 
has  Ordered  you  to  be  Confined  until  he  Receives  Gov'r  Clinton's 
Directions  where  to  send  you —  I  am  also  to  Inform  you  that  how- 
ever you  may  Conceive  your  Honors  hurt  on  the  Occasion — that  it 
has  never  yet  been  Deemed  Honourable  for  Armed  men  to  Assault 
&  Wound  unarmed  men  in  any  Line  Whatever — but  has  been  par- 
ticularly Reprobated  in  the  Army. 

However  in  a  full  Reliance  on  your  Honor  you  may  have  hereby 
the  Liberty  of  the  Camp  till  further  Orders —    Interim  I  am 

Your  Most  Ob't  Hum'l  Ser't 

Ant'y  Wayne 

Capt.  Lieut.  Henderson 

Lieuts.  Marshall,  Ball  &  Ensign  Smith 

Just  as  Wayne  had  settled  the  question  of  rank  in 
his  own  case  by  accepting  the  promise  of  his  appoint- 
ment to  the  command  of  the  corps  "  of  light  infantry, 
which  was  to  be  raised  in  the  spring,"  and,  turning 
over  the  division  to  General  St.  Clair,  had  retired  tem- 
porarily from  the  army,  a  new  source  of  trouble,  arising 
from  the  discontent  of  the  field  officers  with  the  rela- 
tive rank  assigned  them  by  the  "new  arrangement'* 
of  February,  1779,  arose  in  the  Pennsylvania  line. 
Owing  to  the  diminished  number  of  men,  it  became 
necessary  that  the  force  should  be  embodied  in  two 
brigades,  and  that  many  changes  should  be  made  in 
the  personnel  of  the  regimental  officers.  For  many 
reasons,  great  objections  were  made  to  the  new  assign- 
ment. Most  of  Wayne's  officers  had  served  in  the 
line  in  all  the  campaigns  from  the  beginning,  and  they 


174  MAJOR-GENERAL   WAYNE. 

prided  themselves  upon  what  they  and  their  soldiers 
had  done  in  these  campaigns.  Nothing  seemed  more 
unfair  to  them  than  that  high  rank  should  be  given  to 
men  who  had  never,  or  at  most  for  but  a  very  short 
period,  served  in  the  army,  the  rank  conferred  upon 
them  preventing  the  promotion  of  those  who  had  borne 
the  heat  and  burden  of  the  day. 

Especially  was  objection  made  to  giving  these  cov- 
eted places  to  those  who  had  been  taken  prisoners 
of  war  at  Fort  Washington  in  1776  and  had  therefore 
seen  no  service  since  that  date.  Particularly  was  their 
anger  excited  by  the  brevet  commission  given  by  Con- 
gress to  Major  Macpherson,  who  had  seen  no  service 
whatever  in  the  American  army.  Macpherson,  a  na- 
tive of  Philadelphia,  had  been  a  cadet  in  the  English 
service  previous  to  the  Revolution,  and  had  reached 
the  position  of  adjutant  when  hostilities  broke  out.  At 
that  time  he  resigned  his  commission,  but  he.  did  not 
enter  the  American  army  until  February,  1779,  when 
he  was  made  by  Congress  major  by  brevet,  thus  super- 
seding all  those  who  had  faithfully  done  their  duty  as 
officers  of  the  line  for  nearly  three  years.  These  gen- 
tlemen were  so  profoundly  irritated  by  this  conduct  of 
Congress  that  the  field  officers  of  the  different  regi- 
ments unanimously  agreed  to  resign  their  commissions 
if  their  grievances  were  not  redressed  by  the  15th  of 
the  ensuing  April.  The  difficulty  about  Macpherson's 
appointment  was  bridged  over  in  some  way  at  this  time, 
but  in  August,  1780,  the  trouble  was  renewed,  with 
more  threats  on  the  part  of  the  officers  of  a  resignation 
of  their  commissions  if  Macpherson  were  retained  as 
major. 


MONMOUTH.  175 


In  this  alarming  condition  of  things,  Wayne,  although 
he  had  ceased  to  have  any  official  connection  with  the 
Pennsylvania  line,  came  forward,  as  usual,  with  concili- 
atory words  and  pacific  measures.  The  occasion  was 
one  of  great  alarm,  for  the  resignation  of  the  officers 
meant  the  dissolution  of  the  most  efficient  division  in 
the  army.  He  exerted  all  his  influence  to  induce  the 
officers  to  reconsider  their  resolution.  What  compro- 
mise was  made  cannot  be  clearly  indicated,  but  the  re- 
sult was  that  through  Wayne's  agency  these  ill-treated 
officers  retained  their  position  in  the  army,  ready  to  do 
in  the  future,  as  they  had  done  in  the  past,  loyal  service 
to  the  cause  the  success  of  which  they  all  had  so  much 
at  heart. 

The  correspondence  on  this  subject  between  Wayne 
and  the  offended  officers  is  one  of  the  finest  illustrations 
to  be  found  in  his  whole  career  of  the  manner  in  which 
he  gained  the  confidence  of  those  he  commanded. 

General  Wayne  to  the  Field  Officers  of  the  Pennsylvania  Line. 

Philadelphia  14th  March  1779. 

Gentlemen, — In  consequence  of  a  Memorial  of  which  the  en- 
closed is  a  copy,  a  Committee  [of  the  Assembly]  was  appointed 
with  orders  to  call  me  to  their  assistance  to  form  some  plan  for 
putting  our  officers  and  troops  on  an  equal  footing  with  those  of 
other  States — 

We  went  a  little  farther  than  was  expected,  &  presented  the  Hon  : 
House  with  the  inclosed  resolves,  which  after  some  debate  were 
carried  by  a  great  majority.  Your  Letter  of  the  7th  came  to  hand 
too  late,  but  had  it  been  in  time,  it  would  not  have  been  presented, 
as  threats  often  irritate,  &  sometimes  defeat  the  ends  they  are  in- 
tended to  obtain. — However  I  should  have  Retained  it  as  a  Dernier 
resort.  The  recruiting  business  is  now  before  the  house,  who  have 
demanded  a  loan  of  money  from  Congress  for  that  purpose,  &  for 


176  MAJOR-GENERAL   WAYNE. 

procuring  cloathing  &c  for  the  Officers  who  are  now  put  on  a  footing 
equal  to  the  British  Establishment,  &  Superior  to  any  others  on  the 
Continent. 

You  will  in  my  name  please  to  congratulate  the  Officers  and 
Troops  on  the  Occasion  and  believe  me 

Yours  most  affectionately 

Ant'y  Wayne. 
The  Committee  of  Field  Officers 
of  the  Pennsylvania  Line. 

General  Wayne  to  Colonel  Harmar — Extract. 

Philadelphia  24th  Feb'y  1779. 

Dear  Colonel,— Enclosed  is  the  old  arrangement  of  the  Penn'a 
Line  as  made  at  White  Plains.  The  Board  of  War  have  submitted 
a  Copy  of  the  new  one  to  His  Excellency  Gen'l  Washington  for  a 
Completion  in  which  there  are  a  variety  of  errors  among  Others — 
many  Gent'n  who  were  Capt's  are  now  only  rated  as  Cap't  Lieut's 
but  this  being  a  palpable  mistake  you  will  easily  have  it  Rectified — 
you  will  also  be  able  to  point  out  the  Resignations — in  the  Re- 
spective Regiments — and  supplying  their  place,  by  those  next  in 
Command. 

I  fear  that  the  Major  of  the  nth  Regiment  will  give  some  un- 
easiness to  many  worthy  Captains  who  had  Commanded  him — I  also 
feel  for  poor  Minzer.  However  my  hands  are  clear  of  every  part 
of  it  as  you  can  see  by  the  Enclosed  letter  from  the  board  of  War 
wrote  about  the  time  I  left  Camp. 

I  wish  to  God  that  you  and  the  Other  Field  Officers  may  be  able 
to  settle  the  whole  with  mutual  satisfaction  to  all  parties. 

******** 

Millstone  Camp  March  8th  1779. 

Dear  General, — Agreeable  to  your  Request,  I  do  myself  the 
Honor  of  transmitting  you  exact  Copies  of  the  two  Arrangements — 
The  latter  is  likely  to  create  great  Uneasiness —  General  S't  Clair 
has  recommended,  a  Board  of  Field  Officers  to  sit,  &  endeavor  to 
settle  it  amongst  ourselves —     We  shall  have  a  Difficult  Task  of  it — 

The  officers  are  greatly  irritated, — yesterday  they  presented  a 
letter  to  the  Committee,  signed  in  behalf  of  all  the  officers  present, 


MONMOUTH,  177 


stating  many  well  founded  Grievances — desiring  us  to  paint  them 
in  as  striking  Terms  as  possible,  and  to  inform  the  House  of  Assem- 
bly, unless  immediate  Redress  is  granted,  they  would  unanimously 
resign  their  Commissions  by  the  15th  April — 

The  matter  is  really  serious.  Such  a  step .  will  Dissolve  the 
Division —  We  have  wrote  the  Committee  of  Correspondence 
yesterday — informing  them  the  fixed  Determination  of  the  Officers 
— but  I  suppose  it  will  be  treated  as  we  have  been,  with  Neglect 
and  Contempt — 

Should  you  incline  to  accept  the  Command  of  the  Light  Corps — 
I  shall  esteem  it  a  singular  Happiness  to  be  honored  with  a  Com- 
mand under  you — 

I  received  a  letter  some  Days  since  from  Col  Magaw  on  Long 
Island.     Desires  his  Compliments,  and  believe  me 

Dear  General 
Your  most  obed't  hble  serv. 

Jos.  Harmar. 

General  Wayne. 

General  Wayne  to  President  Reed. 

Camp  at  Millstone  24th  Jan'y,  1779. 

Dear  Sir, — I  do  myself  the  Honor  of  Enclosing  an  Address  of 
the  Field  Officers  of  this  Line  to  your  Excellency,  together  with 
Copies  of  Resolves  of  Virginia  &  Maryland  for  supplying  their 
Officers  &  Soldiers  with  Clothing  and  Other  necessaries ;  also  the 
Report  of  the  Committee  respecting  the  Clothing  lately  arrived 
under  the  Conduct  of  Capt.  Lang  with  an  Estimate  of  the  Quantity 
of  Cloth  &  other  Materials  sufficient  to  furnish  a  Suit  of  Clothes 
for  each  Officer. 

It's  with  Sincere  Pleasure  &  Esteem  I  join  in  Sentiment  with 
the  Committee  in  Congratulating  you  on  your  appointment  to  the 
Presidency  of  a  State  which  from  Internal  Divisions  has  been 
Rendered  feeble  &  will  require  the  utmost  exertions  of  that  forti- 
tude &  abilities  with  which  you  have  hitherto  acted  in  every  Vicis- 
situde of  Fortune,  &  from  which  we  have  the  most  flattering  hopes 
of  seeing  Penns'a  resuming  that  rank  &  Consequence  which  she  is 
entitled  to  hold. 

I  am  Confident  that  the  Officers  and  Troops  of  this  Line  will 

13 


1 78  MAJOR-GENERAL   WAYNE. 

soon  Experience  the  happy  effects  of  having  at  the  head  of  their 
State  a  Gen'l  truly  disposed  to  Redress  their  just  Complaints,  &  to 
alleviate  their  distress  &  whom  they  Esteem  as  their  Common  friend 
&  Guardian. 

The  Clear  &  Decided  Opinion  of  the  Committee  of  Arrangement, 
mentioned  in  your  Excellency's  Letter  of  the  14th  Instant — I  shall 
Communicate  in  as  Delicate  a  manner  as  possible  to  the  Gen'l  who 
will  be  affected  by  it, — &  whom  I  most  ardently  wish  to  Retain  in  the 
army  from  the  fullest  Conviction  that  our  Line  will  surfer  extremely 
by  the  Change. 

It  is  not  the  pay  or  Emolument  attending  their  Commissions  that 
can  Induce  Gen' Is  of  Sentiment  and  nice  feelings  of  Honor  to  Con- 
tinue in  this  Service — the  former  being  mere  Vox  prceterea  nihil. 

It  is  the  Letter  &  Rank  alone  that  can  Retain  them — &  when- 
ever Injured  in  these  tender  points  we  must  expect  to  lose  Gen'ls 
of  Spirit  &  Sensibility — who  are  the  very  men  we  want  to  render 
our  arms  formidable  to  our  Enemy  &  Respectable  to  our  friends. 

You  express  a  wish  to  know  the  Date   of  my  Commission — my 

Colonel  Com'n  was  dated   the   3rd  of  Jan'y  1776   my  Brig'r-Gn 

Feb.  1,  1777. 

A.  Wayne. 

On  General  Wayne's  retirement  from  the  command 
of  the  Pennsylvania  line  the  following  letter  was  ad- 
dressed to  him  by  the  field  officers : 

Field  Officers  of  the  Line  to  General  Wayne. 

Millstone  Camp  March  27th  1779. 

Sir, — The  manner  of  expressing  the  grateful  sense  of  a  set  of  men 
conscious  of  their  inability  is  harder  to  conclude  on  than  is  gener- 
ally imagined ;  especially  when  they  know  they  are  more  indebted 
than  the  delicacy  of  the  benefactors  would  choose  to  hear. 

In  this  dilemma  of  gratitude,  we  are  really  at  a  loss,  but  fully 
sensible  of  the  open  goodness  of  your  heart,  are  confident  every 
reasonable  allowance  will  be  made  for  our  want  of  capacity  and 
expression. 

We  are  (long  since)  acquainted  with  your  endeavours  to  render 
the  Troops  of  the  State  of  Pennsylvania  respectable  and  comfort- 


MONMOUTH.  179 


able;  and  the  recent  proof  you  have  given  of  your  attachment  to 
them,  has  rivetted  the  hearts  of  all  ranks  more  firmly  to  you  (if  pos- 
sible) than  before.  Your  manly  and  pathetic  address  to  the  Assem- 
bly must  (nay  does)  render  your  name  more  dear  to  the  whole  line, 
who  are  confident  of  its  effect  with  the  House. — If  there  be  a 
merit  in  keeping  the  present  set  of  Officers  in  the  Service,  or  a  bene- 
fit hereafter  result  by  it  to  the  State,  it  is  much  owing  to  your  deli- 
cate mode  of  proceeding  on  the  occasion ;  as  they  were  generally 
determined  to  quit  the  Field  : — but,  as  a  provision  is  now  made  that 
will  enable  them  to  serve,  we  hope  our  friends  and  Country  will 
be  convinced  (and  see)  by  our  future  conduct,  it  was  no  licentious 
or  parsimonious  view,  but  real  necessity  and  an  apparent  neglect, 
caused  by  the  resolution. 

We  therefore  beg  leave  to  assure  you,  sir,  that  we  have  the 
highest  opinion  of  your  integrity  and  worth ;  and  though  we  have 
not  now  the  honour  to  be  commanded  by  you  in  the  Field,  we  hope 
you  will  not  imagine  us  so  contracted  in  sentiment,  as  to  lose  any 
part  of  that  sincere  esteem  and  respect  we  have  ever  had  for  you  as 
a  Friend,  a  Brother,  &  Commander,  and  hope  in  a  short  time  to  see 
justice  done  to  your  well-known  merit,  and  you  placed  in  that  station 
we  are  confident  you  can  fill  with  honour  to  yourself,  satisfaction  to 
the  Public,  &  benefit  to  your  Country. 

Filled  with  these  sentiments,  and  conscious  of  your  deserts,  we 
pray  you  to  receive,  through  us,  the  most  grateful  acknowledgments 
of  your  services,  and  the  sincere  thanks  of  the  whole  Line  present ; 
with  their  best  wishes  for  your  health  &  welfare, — and  in  a  particular 
manner  the  thanks  and  Friendship  of,  Dear  General 
Your  most  obedient  & 

very  affectionate  Humble  Servants 

James  Chambers  Col  10th  P.  Reg. 

Rich'd  Butler  Col  7th  P.  Reg. 

T.  Craig  Col.  3rd  P.  Reg. 

Jos  Harmar  Lt  Com  6th  P  Reg. 

J.  Mentges  Maj.  7th  P.  Reg. 

Jno.  Murray  Maj  2.  P.  Reg. 

Thomas  L.  Byles  Maj  3  P.  Reg. 

Wm  Williams  Lt  Col  3  P.  Reg. 

J.  Grier  Maj  10th  P.  Reg. 


180  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

No  sooner  was  it  known  in  the  army  that  General 
Wayne  was  to  command  the  new  Light  Infantry  Corps 
than  many  officers,  old  officers  of  the  Pennsylvania  line, 
as  well  as  those  of  other  States,  expressed  an  ardent 
desire  to  serve  under  him,  and  solicited  him  to  ask 
General  Washington  to  appoint  them  to  positions  in 
the  new  corps.  Wayne,  with  characteristic  deference 
to  the  wishes  of  the  commander-in-chief,  writes  him  in 
May,  1779,  "  I  had  better  be  absent  (while  the  corps  is 
being  organized)  lest  it  should  be  supposed,  however 
erroneously,  that  partiality  of  mine  for  certain  officers 
had  tended  to  bring  them  into  the  Corps." 

The  Light  Infantry  Corps  of  the  Continental  army, 
which  during  its  short  life  became  so  famous  for  its  dis- 
cipline, and  so  illustrious  for  its  deeds  of  valor,  notably 
for  its  assault  on  Stony  Point,  was  composed,  according 
to  Colonel  Johnston,  "  of  one  and  a  half  battalions  of 
the  choicest  sons  of  Pennsylvania,  taken  from  your  own 
line,  and  so  in  proportion  to  the  other  lines  on  this 
ground  [camp  at  Middlebrook],  and,  if  no  detachments 
are  made,  your  command  is  intended  to  number  2000 
men,  and  is  preferable  to  that  of  any  in  the  Army." 
There  were  two  Connecticut  regiments  in  it,  under  Col- 
onels Putnam  and  Meigs,  a  Virginia  regiment,  under 
Colonel  Febiger,  and  the  rest  were  Pennsylvanians, 
under  Colonel  Richard  Butler.  They  were  formed  in 
two  brigades,  the  first  commanded  by  General  Irvine, 
and  the  second  by  Colonel  Johnston.  It  was  ready  to 
take  the  field  towards  the  close  of  June,  1779. 

So  much  has  been  said,  and  justly  said,  of  the  evils 
in  the  Continental  army  due  to  sectional  distrust  and 
jealousy  among  the  troops,  that  it  is  only  fair,  in  re- 


MONMOUTH.  181 


counting  the  deeds  of  the  men  who  formed  this  Light 
Infantry  Corps,  to  recall  that  at  least  on  one  moment- 
ous occasion  an  appeal  to  their  State  pride  proved 
of  advantage.  In  his  address  to  his  men  detailed  for 
the  assault  on  Stony  Point  General  Wayne  tells  them, 
"  The  distinguished  honor  conferred  upon  every  officer 
and  soldier  who  has  been  drafted  into  this  corps,  by  his 
Excellency  General  Washington,  the  credit  of  the  States 
they  respectively  belong  to,  and  their  own  reputations, 
will  be  such  powerful  motives  for  each  man  to  distin- 
guish himself,  that  the  General  cannot  have  the  least 
doubt  of  a  glorious  victory.  He  hereby  engages  to 
reward  the  first  man  who  enters  the  works.  .  .  .  But 
should  there  be  any  soldier  so  lost  to  a  feeling  of  honor 
as  to  attempt  to  retreat  a  single  foot,  or  skulk  in  the 
face  of  danger,  the  officer  next  to  him  is  immediately 
to  put  him  to  death,  that  he  may  no  longer  disgrace  the 
name  of  a  soldier,  or  the  corps  or  the  State  to  which  he 
belongs." 

Such  was  the  martial  tone  with  which  Wayne  ad- 
dressed his  soldiers  within  a  few  days  after  assuming 
the  command,  and  in  preparation  for  the  most  hazard- 
ous enterprise  of  the  war,  the  assault  on  the  fortress 
at  Stony  Point. 


CHAPTER    V. 

STONY   POINT.1 

On  Wayne's  return  to  the  army  in  June,  1779,  he 
found  General  Washington  extremely  desirous  of  re- 
capturing two  forts, — one  at  Stony  Point,  on  the  western 
side  of  the  Hudson  River,  and  the  other  at  Verplanck's 
Point,  opposite,  on  the  eastern  side, — which  guarded 
the  approach  to  King's  Ferry,  and  which  the  British  had 
forced  the  Americans  to  evacuate  on  the  1st  of  June. 
The  forts  were  regarded  as  important,  not  only  because 
they  commanded  King's  Ferry,  the  only  convenient  line 
of  communication  between  the  New  England  and  the 
middle  Colonies,  but  also  because,  standing  as  they  did 
at  the  southern  extremity  of  the  Highlands,  they  gave 
control,  in  the  hands  of  an  enemy,  over  West  Point  and 
its  dependencies  to  the  northward. 

The  strategetical  value  of  this  position,  indeed,  was 
such  that  it  had  been  the  objective  point  of  Burgoyne 
when  he  strove  to  form  a  junction  with  the  British 
coming  from  New  York  in  1777,  and  it  was  afterwards 
thought  by  Sir  H.  Clinton  to  be  so  essential  to  his 
operations  in  that  quarter  that  he  attempted  to  pur- 

1  There  have  been,  of  course,  many  accounts  printed  of  the  famous 
assault  on  Stony  Point.  That  of  Mr.  Henry  B.  Dawson,  written 
with  all  Wayne's  papers  before  him,  seems  to  me  the  most  accu- 
rate and  satisfactory,  and  has  therefore  been  mainly  followed  in  this 
chapter. 
182 


STONY  POINT.  183 


chase  the  possession  of  West  Point  by  the  bribery  of 
Arnold  in  September,  1780. 

It  would  appear  that  Washington  waited  impatiently 
for  the  arrival  of  Wayne  in  order  to  concert  with  him 
measures  for  regaining  these  posts,  and,  indeed,  that 
he  designed  that  the  newly-formed  Light  Infantry  Corps, 
of  which  he  had  appointed  Wayne  commander,  should 
carry  out  his  plans  for  this  purpose. 

The  fort  at  Stony  Point  was  built  on  a  rocky  prom- 
ontory on  the  west  side  of  the  Hudson,  about  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  feet  high.  Three  sides  of  this  promon- 
tory were  surrounded  by  water,  and  on  the  fourth  a 
swamp  or  morass,  which  was  not  passable  at  high  tide, 
separated  it  from  the  land.  It  was  guarded  by  three 
redoubts,  and  protected  by  a  double  abatis  of  logs, 
which  extended  across  the  peninsula.  The  cannon 
were  so  arranged  as  to  enfilade  any  approach  to  the 
inner  works  supposed  to  be  practicable.  It  had  a  gar- 
rison of  about  five  hundred  men,  under  the  command 
of  Colonel  Johnston,  who  was  regarded  as  a  highly  capa- 
ble officer. 

The  main  part  of  Washington's  army  was  then  en- 
camped in  Smith's  Clove,  about  ten  miles  back  of  West 
Point,  and  head-quarters  were  at  New  Windsor.  It 
had  been  intended  that  the  Light  Infantry  Corps,  which 
was  detailed  for  the  purpose  of  assaulting  the  works, 
should  consist  of  eight  battalions  of  one  hundred  and 
sixty-four  men  each,  under  the  command  of  a  briga- 
dier-general. Two  only  of  the  regiments  belonging  to 
this  corps,  or  four  battalions,  were  actually  formed  and 
organized  on  the  1st  of  July,  when  Washington  issued 
his  orders  to  prepare  for  the  assault.     These  orders  di- 


1 84  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

rected,  in  the  first  place,  that  a  thorough  reconnoissance 
of  the  position  should  be  made,  so  that  an  accurate 
knowledge  of  the  points  to  be  assailed  should  be  ob- 
tained, and  especially  that  the  manner  in  which  these 
points  were  guarded  should  be  carefully  observed. 
These  four  battalions  were  supposed  to  form  the  elite 
of  Washington's  army,  and  the  men  composing  them 
had  been  selected  with  great  care.  They  were  com- 
manded respectively  by  Colonels  Putnam  and  Meigs  of 
Connecticut,  Colonel  Richard  Butler  of  Pennsylvania, 
and  Colonel  Christian  Febiger  of  Virginia. 

It  is  curious  to  notice,  as  an  instance  of  the  malad- 
ministration of  the  army  service,  that,  although  the  offi- 
cers and  men  of  the  Light  Infantry  Corps  were  ready 
for  any  dangerous  enterprise  which  might  be  under- 
taken, the  commissariat,  as  so  often  happened  at  critical 
periods  of  the  Revolution,  was  at  fault,  and  its  condition 
threatened  the  success  of  the  movement  against  Stony 
Point.  Thus,  General  Wayne  was  obliged  on  the  8th 
of  July  to  reprimand  the  commissary  for  not  providing 
any  forage  for  his  horses  ;  they  would,  he  says,  "  if 
they  could  speak,  d — n  him  for  starving  them  ;"  and 
on  the  next  day,  while  he  was  completing  the  prepa- 
rations for  the  assault,  he  was  forced  to  tell  the  same 
officer,  "The  Light  Corps  under  my  command  has  been 
much  neglected  in  almost  every  article  of  provision. 
They  have  had  but  two  days'  fresh  provisions  since  they 
arrived  here  [Fort  Montgomery],  and  not  more  than 
three  days'  allowance  of  rum  in  twelve  days,  which 
article  I  borrowed  from  General  MacDougall,  with  a 
promise  to  replace  it." 

No  privations,  however,  seem  to  have  cooled  the 


STONY  POINT,  1S5 


ardor  of  his  soldiers.  His  officers  were  all  men  of  tried 
valor  and  enterprise,  and  of  abundant  experience  in 
desperate  undertakings.  Had  the  army  itself  chosen 
the  leaders  of  the  expedition  they  would  doubtless  have 
been  selected  for  that  purpose.  Richard  Butler,  the 
Pennsylvanian,  as  we  have  seen,  had  already  shown  a 
coolness  in  action  in  many  severe  engagements,  es- 
pecially in  Morgan's  Rifle  Regiment,  which  fitted  him 
for  any  emergency;  Meigs  and  Rufus  Putnam  of  Con- 
necticut were  well  known  as  possessing  a  skill  and  de- 
votion to  the  cause  equalled  only  by  the  bravery  with 
which  they  had  maintained  it ;  and  Febiger,  a  Dane  by 
birth,  the  colonel  of  the  Virginia  regiment,  was  recog- 
nized by  all  as  one  of  the  most  trustworthy  officers  in 
the  army.  Serving  under  them,  and  sharing  all  the 
dangers  of  the  attempt,  were  men  whose  names  have 
become  conspicuous  as  among  the  bravest  in  Revo- 
lutionary history.  The  soldiers  came  from  widely- 
separated  States.  The  men  of  Connecticut  and  Mas- 
sachusetts stood  shoulder  to  shoulder  with  those  of 
Pennsylvania  and  Virginia,  while  the  gallant  Murfrees 
with  his  North  Carolina  troops  was  a  tower  of  strength 
to  both  the  assaulting  columns. 

The  result  of  the  reconnoissance  made  by  Wayne  was 
a  decision  that  a  storming  of  the  defences  was  not  likely 
to  be  successful,  and  that  if  the  fort  was  to  be  taken  at 
all  it  could  be  done  only  by  surprise, — that  is,  by  a  sud- 
den and  overwhelming  rush  of  the  assailants,  which, 
overcoming  all  obstacles,  should  drive  the  defenders 
from  their  outer  works  into  the  interior  of  the  fort  and 
overcome  them  before  they  had  time  to  rally  or  oppor- 
tunity for  resistance.    Such  a  plan,  of  course,  increased 


1 86  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

the  danger  of  the  attempt,  but  if  it  could  be  carried 
out, — and  that  depended  upon  the  firmness  and  forti- 
tude of  the  officers  and  men, — success  was  assured. 

The  following  is  the  report  of  the  careful  reconnois- 
sance  of  the  place  made  by  General  Wayne,  aided  by 
Colonel  Butler  and  Major  Steward: 

General  Wayne  to  General  Washington. 

Fort  Montgomery  3rd  July  1779 
10  O'Clock  a.m 

Dear  General, — In  Obedience  to  your  Excellency's  Orders  I 
have  Reconnoitred  the  Situation  of  the  Enemy  at  Stoney  point 
&  the  approaches  to  them  in  the  best  manner  that  Circumstances 
would  admit  &  Returned  late  last  evening  to  this  place — 

The  sketch  herewith  transmitted  (which  differs  but  little  from  that 
made  the  Other  day  by  Col'l  Butler)  will  give  you  a  General  Idea 
of  the  Strength  of  their  Works  on  the  West  Side  which  in  my 
Opinion  are  formidable — (I  think  too  much  so  for  a  Storm)  &  to 
attempt  to  Reduce  it  by  Regular  Approaches  will  require  time  as 
there  is  no  ground  within  less  distance  than  a  half  a  mile  but  what 
it  commands. 

The  works  on  Verplanks  point  are  by  no  means  so  formidable  as 
those  on  this  side — altho'  they  consist  of  four  Redoubts — Viz.  the 
one  made  by  us  Called  La  Fayette  with  upraised  Ditch  the  second 
situated  to  the  N.W.  on  the  Rising  ground  near  the  River  in  which 
is  a  block  House — the  third  thrown  up  round  a  strong  stone  House 
East  of  Fort  La  Fayette  &  on  the  margin  of  a  Rising  ground  Com- 
manding the  causeway  from  the  Church — the  fourth  is  Situate  on 
the  East  Side  of  the  Creek  &  march,  on  a  high  point  of  Rocks 
commanding  all  the  Ground  in  its  vicinity  &  overlooking  the  cause- 
way (it  has  also  a  block  House)  these  last  three  are  Surrounded 
with  Abbatis  but  not  pierced  nor  cou'd  I  discover  any  Embrasures 
perhaps  they  fire  in  Barbet  ? 

I  am  clear  that  they  have  not  more  than  men  on  Stoney 

point  &  about  on  Verplanks  point  in  all  of  which  I  am  joined 

in  Opinion  by  Col.  Butler  &  Major  Steward  who  were  with  me  on 
this  duty  &  on  whose  judgment  I  much  rely — 


STONY  POINT.  187 


Upon  the  whole  I  do  not  think  a  Storm  practicable — but  perhaps 
a  Surprise  may  be  Effected — could  we  fall  on  some  stratagem  to 
draw  them  out —  A  thought  has  struck  me  that  as  no  party  of  force 
has  ever  yet  been  down  or  Appeared  to  the  Enemy — &  as  I  have 
ground  to  believe  that  an  Inhabitant  living  near  Stoney  point  acts 
a  double  part  &  of  course  will  give  them  every  Information  in  his 
power — which  goes  no  further  than  to  the  usual  route  &  number 
of  the  Reconnoitring  parties — they  may  be  Induced  to  Attempt  an 
Ambuscade  or  if  they  should  not  attempt  this  a  few  of  our  people 
appearing  near  may  bring  a  party  out  in  pursuit  which  may  give  an 
Opening  to  enter  with  them.  Shou'd  your  Excellency  Incline  to 
Reconnoitre  the  works  tomorrow  morning-  or  next  day  I  will  have 
a  proper  Disposition  made  of  the  Light  Corps  so  as  to  Effectually 
cover  you,  or  attempt  the  surprise  in  Case  it  meets  your  Approba- 
tion—  The  Troops  at  the  forrest  of  Dane  may  Cooperate  with  us  if 
thought  necessary 

Interim  I  am  your  Excellency's  Most 
Ob't  Hum'l  Ser't 

Ant'y  Wayne 

His  Excellency 
Gen'l  Washington. 

The  plan  finally  adopted  by  General  Washington, 
after  making  himself  a  reconnoissance  of  the  place, 
somewhat  modified  by  Wayne  in  consequence  of  his 
greater  familiarity  with  the  ground,  was  the  follow- 
ing. The  commander-in-chief  writes  to  General  Wayne, 
July  10  — 

"  My  ideas  of  the  enterprise  in  contemplation  are 
these  : 

"  That  it  should  be  attempted  by  the  Light  Infantry 
only,  which  should  march  under  cover  of  the  night  and 
with  the  utmost  secrecy  to  the  enemy's  lines,  securing 
every  person  they  find  to  prevent  discovery. 

"  Between  one  &  two  hundred  chosen  men  &  officers 
I  conceive  fully  sufficient  for  the  surprise,  and  appre- 


1 88  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

hend  that  the  approach  should  be  along  the  water  on 
the  south  side,  crossing  the  beach  and  entering  at  the 
abattis. 

"  This  party  is  to  be  preceded  by  a  vanguard  of  pru- 
dent and  determined  men  well  commanded,  who  are  to 
remove  obstructions,  secure  the  sentries,  and  drive  in 
the  guard.  They  are  to  advance  (the  whole  of  them) 
with  fixed  bayonets  and  muskets  unloaded.  The  offi- 
cers commanding  them  are  to  know  precisely  what 
batteries  or  particular  parts  of  the  line  they  are  re- 
spectively to  possess,  so  that  confusion  &  the  conse- 
quences of  indecision  may  be  avoided. 

"  These  parties  should  be  followed  by  the  main  body 
at  a  small  distance  for  the  purpose  of  support.  .  .  . 
Other  parties  may  advance  to  the  works  by  the  way  of 
the  causeway  &  the  River  on  the  north  if  practicable 
as  well  for  the  purpose  of  distracting  the  enemy  in 
their  defence  as  to  cut  off  their  retreat.  .  .  . 

"  If  success  should  attend  the  enterprise  measures 
should  be  taken  to  prevent  the  retreat  of  the  garrison 
by  water,  or  to  annoy  them  as  much  as  possible  should 
they  attempt  it.  The  guns  should  be  immediately 
turned  against  the  shipping  and  Verplanck's  point,  and 
covered,  if  possible,  from  the  enemy's  fire. 

"  Secrecy  is  so  much  more  essential  to  these  kind  of 
enterprises  than  numbers,  that  I  should  not  think  it 
advisable  to  employ  any  other  than  light  troops.  If  a 
surprise  takes  place  they  are  fully  equal  to  the  business, 
if  it  does  not  numbers  will  avail  little." 

The  commander-in-chief  then  goes  on  to  impress 
upon  Wayne  the  necessity  of  taking  precautions  to 
preserve  secrecy,   and   even    speaks   in   detail  of  the 


STONY  POINT.  189 


hour  when  the  attack  should  be  made,  recommending 
"  that  the  troops  should  move  on  the  works  at  mid- 
night rather  than  at  the  morning  dawn/'  He  concludes 
by  saying  to  General  Wayne  that  these  are,  in  his 
opinion,  the  principles  that  should  govern  him  in  his 
operations;  but,  after  telling  him  that  he  relies  abso- 
lutely on  his  judgment,  he  gives  him  "  full  liberty  to 
vary  the  plan  of  attack  as  the  circumstances  of  the 
hour  may  require." 

This  letter  of  instructions  of  General  Washington  has 
often  been  printed,  and  it  shows  how  he,  in  this  as  in  all 
his  other  military  enterprises,  pointed  out  with  pains- 
taking accuracy  to  his  subordinates  every  detail  of  the 
work  to  be  done.  It  is  equally  remarkable  as  a  proof 
of  the  confidence  which  he  reposed  in  Wayne  when 
difficult  operations  were  to  be  undertaken.  He  dwells, 
it  will  be  observed,  on  the  minutest  particulars  of  the 
movement,  as  if  a  careful  observance  of  each  was  es- 
sential to  the  success  of  the  operations  in  which  the 
Light  Infantry  Corps  was  to  engage.  Although,  with 
that  modesty  which  was  one  of  his  strongest  peculiari- 
ties, he  left  to  Wayne  full  liberty  to  modify  his  plans, 
yet  such  was  the  accuracy  with  which  he  sketched  the 
work  of  the  troops  that  Wayne  found  it  unnecessary 
to  make  any  change,  except,  as  will  appear,  in  an  un- 
important detail,  when  it  came  to  the  actual  assault. 
This  change,  by  the  way,  Washington  calls,  in  his  official 
report,  an  "improvement  on  his  own  plan."  The  plan 
adopted,  then,  was  substantially  that  of  the  commander- 
in-chief  himself. 

On  the  14th  of  July  Washington  permitted  Wayne 
to  make  the  assault  on  the  next  night  should  he  think 


i9o  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

the  circumstances  favorable.  On  the  next  day  Wayne, 
in  company  with  Colonels  Butler  and  Febiger,  made  a 
last  reconnoissance,  when  it  was  determined  to  add  to 
the  plan  suggested  by  General  Washington  "a  second 
attack,"  as  Wayne  called  it,  which,  as  he  writes  to  the 
general,  "is  the  only  alteration  from  yours  of  the  ioth." 
In  the  buoyancy  of  his  spirit  he  concludes  his  last  de- 
spatch to  his  chief  in  these  hopeful  words:  "I  am 
pleased  at  the  prospect  of  the  day,  and  have  the  most 
happy  presages  of  the  fortune  of  the  night."  He  en- 
closed in  his  letter  a  copy  of  his  "  order  of  battle,"  as  he 
called  it,  or  his  instructions  for  the  assault. 

The  regiments  must  move  forward  in  absolute  silence  ; 
no  one,  on  any  pretence,  to  leave  the  ranks  (to  pre- 
serve secrecy),  on  penalty  of  being  at  once  put  to 
death  by  the  officer  in  charge.1  Arrived  at  the  foot 
of  the  hill,  Colonel  Febiger  was  to  form  his  regiment 
in  a  solid  column  of  half-platoon  front,  Colonel  Meigs 
to  follow  immediately  after  Febiger,  and  Major — after- 
wards General — Hull  (in  the  absence  of  Colonel  Put- 
nam, on  duty  at  Constitution  Island)  in  the  rear  of  Meigs. 
These  were  to  form  the  right  column  of  attack.  The 
left  column  was  formed  in  the  same  way  under  Colonel 
Richard  Butler,  with  Major  Murfrees,  of  North  Carolina, 
in  the  rear. 

Each  column  was  to  be  preceded  by  a  detachment  of 
one  hundred  and  fifty  "  picked  and  determined  men," 
that  on  the  right  to  be  commanded  by  Colonel  Fleury 
(a  French  officer  who  had  done  much  gallant  service 

x  This  was  no  vain  threat.  While  the  troops  were  preparing  for 
the  assault,  one  unfortunate  stepped  out  of  the  ranks  to  load  his 
musket.     He  was  at  once  run  through  by  one  of  the  officers. 


STONY  POINT.  191 


during  the  war),  that  on  the  left  by  Major  Jack  Steward 
of  Maryland.  Each  was  to  send  forward  on  his  march 
an  officer  and  twenty  men  a  little  in  advance,  whose 
business  it  should  be  to  secure  the  sentries  and  remove 
the  abatis  and  obstructions  for  the  column  to  pass 
through.  These  parties  of  twenty  men,  known  in  mili- 
tary parlance  as  "the  forlorn  hope,"  held  the  post 
where  the  danger  was  greatest,  but  where  the  chance 
of  acquiring  glory  in  case  of  survival  was  most  certain. 
When  the  left  column  reached  a  certain  point,  Murfrees 
was  to  separate  from  it,  and  open  a  furious  fire  on  the 
front  of  the  works,  in  order  to  draw  the  attention  of 
the  enemy  from  the  flanking  columns.  The  right  and 
left  columns  were  to  capture  the  outlying  pickets,  and, 
attacking  the  defenders,  force  their  way  over  and  around 
the  abatis  and  enter  the  interior  of  the  fort  by  the  sally- 
port, driving  the  enemy  before  them. 

The  battalion  of  light  horse  under  Major  Henry  Lee 
had  been  ordered  to  follow  the  expedition  as  a  corps  de 
reserve.  Colonel  Ball's  regiment  of  infantry  had  been 
moved  forward  from  Rose's  farm  to  support  the  column 
should  support  become  necessary,  and  as  cover  to  the 
whole  the  brigade  commanded  by  General  Muhlenberg 
was  advanced  to  a  convenient  position. 

The  troops  marched  during  the  evening  of  the  15th 
of  July  from  Sandy  Beach  to  Stony  Point,  a  distance 
of  nearly  fourteen  miles,  over  country  roads  so  ex- 
ceedingly bad  and  narrow  that  for  a  large  part  of  the 
distance  they  were  obliged  to  move  in  Indian  file. 
They  formed  in  half-platoons  at  the  bottom  of  the 
hill,  each  column  preceded  by  a  detachment  of  one 
hundred  and  fifty  men,  and  that  again  by  the  "  forlorn 


i92  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

hope,"  consisting  of  twenty  men,  as  a  vanguard.  These 
two  "  forlorn  hopes"  were  led  by  two  young  Pennsyl- 
vania lieutenants,  that  on  the  right  being  in  charge 
of  Lieutenant  Knox  of  the  Ninth  Regiment,  and  that 
on  the  left  in  command  of  Lieutenant  Gibbons  of  the 
Sixth ;  Major  Jack  Steward  of  Maryland  commanded 
the  advanced  guard  on  the  left,  Colonel  Fleury  on  the 
right,  where  Wayne  in  person  directed  the  column, 
"  spear  in  hand,"  Major  Murfrees  being  in  the  centre. 
This  was  their  formation  close  by  the  foot  of  the  hill  at 
half-past  eleven  o'clock,  when,  silent  but  determined  and 
full  of  ardor  and  enterprise,  they  prepared  to  undertake 
the  most  perilous  feat  of  the  war.  At  that  time  Wayne 
went  to  a  house  close  by.  While  they  were  preparing 
his  supper  he  wrote  the  following  characteristic  letter  to 
his  dear  and  trusted  friend  Sharp  Delany.1  It  is  clear 
from  its  tenor  that  he  did  not  expect  to  survive  the  as- 
sault, but  his  handwriting  is  as  unshaken,  and  his  faith  in 
the  cause  as  triumphant,  as  if  no  other  sentiment  than 
an  ardent  desire  to  do  his  duty  to  his  country  without 
regard  to  consequences  stirred  him.  General  Wayne's 
letter  probably  echoed  the  feeling  of  all  under  him. 

Springsteel's  i  i  o'clock  p.m. 

15  July  1779,  near  the 

hour  &  scene  of  carnage 

Dear  Delany, — This  will  not  meet  your  eye  until  the  writer  is  no 
more.  The  enclosed  papers  I  commit  [in  their  rough  state]  to  your 
charge  that  in  case  any  ungenerous  reflections  may  hereafter  drop 
from  illiberal  minds  my  friend  may  be  enabled  to  defend  the  Charac- 

*  Delany  was  not  Wayne's  brother-in-law,  as  Mr.  Dawson  says. 
He  had  married  the  sister  of  Colonel  Robinson,  whose  wife  and 
Wayne's  wife  were  sisters. 


STONY  POINT.  193 


ter  &  Support  the  honor  of  the  man  who  loved  him,  &  who  fell  in 
the  defence  of  his  Country  and  of  the  rights  of  mankind. 

You  have  often  heard  me  default  the  Supineness  &  unworthy  tor- 
pidity into  which  Congress  were  lulled  and  that  it  was  my  opinion 
that  this  would  be  a  Sanguinary  Campaign  in  which  many  of  the 
choicest  Spirits  and  much  of  the  best  blood  in  America  would  be 
lost  owing  to  the  parsimony  and  neglect  of  Congress. 

If  ever  any  prediction  was  true  it  is  this,  and  if  ever  a  great  and 
good  man  was  Surrounded  with  a  choice  of  difficulties  it  is  General 
Washington.  I  fear  the  Consequences,  &  See  clearly  that  he  will  be 
impelled  to  make  other  attempts  and  Efforts  to  save  his  Country 
that  his  numbers  will  not  be  adequate  to,  and  that  he  also  may  fall  a 
Sacrifice  to  the  folly  &  parsimony  of  our  worthy  rulers. 

I  know  that  friendship  will  induce  you  to  attend  to  the  education 
of  my  little  son  &  daughter.  I  fear  that  their  mother  will  not  survive 
this  Stroke.  Do  go  to  her  &  tell  her  her  Children  claim  her  kindest 
offices  &  protection. 

My  best  and  Sincerest  wishes  to  Mrs  Delany  &  family  and  to  all 
friends.  I  am  called  to  Sup,  but  where  to  breakfast,  either  within 
the  enemy's  lines  in  triumph  or  in  the  other  World  !  Then  fare- 
well my  best  and  dearest  friend  and  believe  me  to  the  last  moment 

Yours  most  Sincerely 

Anth'v  Wayne. 

At  half-past  eleven  the  word  to  advance  was  given ; 
the  right  column  diverged  to  the  south  for  the  purpose 
of  passing  the  swamp  and  reaching  the  beach  at  the  foot 
of  the  hill,  and  at  the  same  time  the  left,  under  Colo- 
nel Butler,  crossed  the  creek  for  the  purpose  of  seizing 
the  post  of  a  picket  of  the  enemy  and  assaulting  the 
right  flank  of  the  fortification.  Major  Murfrees,  between 
these  two  columns,  advanced  up  the  slope.  The  right, 
or  column  led  by  General  Wayne  in  person,  was  obliged, 
in  order  to  reach  the  abatis,  to  wade  through  water  two 
feet  deep,  and  this  somewhat  delayed  the  movement. 
Meantime,  Murfrees  began,  as  a  feint,  a  tremendous 

14 


i94  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

firing  of  musketry.  This,  of  course,  aroused  the  garri- 
son, who  in  a  very  short  time  were  at  their  stations, 
striving  to  repel  the  assault  with  grape  and  musketry. 
This  was  the  crisis  of  danger  for  the  assailants.  The 
forlorn  hope  of  each  column  rushed  forward  to  perform 
the  duty  assigned  to  it,  that  of  cutting  away  the  abatis 
and  removing  the  obstructions  which  stood  in  the  way 
of  the  advance  of  their  comrades.  So  fierce  and  terri- 
ble was  the  fight  at  this  point  that  of  the  twenty  men 
detailed  for  this  service  on  the  left  under  Lieutenant 
Gibbons  seventeen  were  killed  or  wounded  in  the 
assault. 

It  is  significant  of  the  kind  of  duty  which  these  men 
performed  in  this  night's  work  that  they  should  have 
been  called  "the  forlorn  hope."  Yet  such  was  the 
martial  ardor  which  animated  those  who  were  engaged 
in  the  expedition,  and  such  was  the  ambition  on  the  part 
of  the  subaltern  officers  to  reach  distinction  by  lead- 
ing the  party  which  should  force  this  "  imminent  deadly 
breach/'  that  it  was  necessary  to  select  its  leader  by  lot, 
so  numerous  were  the  applicants  who  aspired  to  the 
honor  of  the  command. 

The  double  row  of  abatis  on  the  right  seems  to  have 
been  more  readily  disposed  of  than  that  on  the  left, 
where,  as  we  have  seen,  resistance  was  overcome  only 
after  a  terrible  slaughter. 

The  first  abatis  was  turned  by  the  column  of  Colo- 
nel Febiger  moving  along  the  beach  under  the  imme- 
diate direction  of  General  Wayne,  "spear  in  hand." 
Just  as  the  column  had  climbed  over  this  obstruction, 
a  musket-shot  coming  from  a  body  of  men  on  the  hill 
above,  who  were  taunting  the  assailants  and  shouting 


STONY  POINT.  195 


imprecations  on  "the  rebels"  as  they  advanced,  struck 
General  Wayne,  and  inflicted  a  scalp-wound  about 
two  inches  long.  He  immediately  fell,  and  was  for  a 
short  time  dazed  and  stunned.  Quickly  recovering  his 
senses,  however,  he  raised  himself  on  one  knee  and 
shouted,  "  Forward,  my  brave  fellows,  forward !"  and 
then,  turning  to  his  aides-de-camp,  Captains  Fishbourne 
and  Archer,  he  begged  them  to  carry  him  to  the  interior 
of  the  fort,  where  he  wished  to  die  should  his  wound 
prove  mortal.  The  men,  hearing  that  their  commander 
had  been  mortally  wounded,  dashed  forward,  climbing 
the  rocks  with  bayonets  ready  to  charge,  and  bore 
down  all  further  opposition.  Colonel  Fleury,  who  led 
the  right  column,  soon  reached  the  flag-staff  on  the 
bastion  and  hauled  down  the  English  standard.  He 
was  the  first  to  enter  the  fort,  and  he  was  quickly  fol- 
lowed by  two  sergeants  of  the  Virginia  and  one  of  the 
Pennsylvania  regiments,  all  of  whom  had  been  severely 
wounded.  So  accurately  had  the  movement  for  storm- 
ing the  works  been  timed,  and  so  perfectly  had  the 
plans  and  orders  been  carried  out,  that  both  columns 
of  assault,  as  well  as  Major  Murfrees's  two  companies, 
met  almost  at  the  same  time  in  the  interior  of  the  fort. 
They  encountered,  as  they  advanced,  a  persistent  fire 
of  grape  and  musketry.  Not  a  shot  was  fired  by  the 
assailants  (except  by  the  men  of  Murfrees's  companies, 
whose  firing  was  intended  as  a  feint).  All  those  killed 
by  the  Americans,  and  they  amounted  to  sixty-three 
(the  same  number  as  had  been  killed  by  General  Grey 
at  the  so-called  Paoli  massacre),  were  despatched  by 
the  bayonet.  As  soon  as  the  attacking  columns  met 
each  other  in   the  fort,   Colonel   Fleury,   feeling   that 


i96  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

resistance  was  at  an  end,  shouted,  in  broken  English, 
"  The  fort  is  ours !"  the  watchword  previously  agreed 
upon.  The  surrender  of  the  fort  was  announced  to 
Washington  in  the  following  note : 

Stony  Point,  16  July  2  a.m. 
Dear  Gen'l, — The  fort  &  garrison  with  Col.  Johnston  are  ours. 
Our  officers  &  men  behaved  like  men  who  are  determined  to  be  free. 

Yours  most  sincerely, 

Anth'y  Wayne. 
Gen'l  Washington. 

The  triumphant  shout  of  the  advancing  party  was 
taken  up  by  the  troops  as  they  rushed  on,  crushing  all 
hope  of  resistance  on  the  part  of  the  garrison.  With 
this  shout  were  mingled  the  cries  of  the  soldiers,  espe- 
cially of  the  New  York  Loyalists,  who  a  short  half-hour 
before  had  defied  their  assailants  to  come  on,  "  Mercy, 
dear  Americans,  mercy !"  Although  no  such  cry  had 
been  heeded  at  Paoli,  Wayne  made  use  of  his  return- 
ing strength  to  stay  the  arm  of  vengeance  as  soon  as 
resistance  had  ceased.  It  is  said  that  not  a  man  was 
killed  who  begged  for  quarter.  No  time,  of  course, 
was  lost  in  turning  the  cannon  at  Stony  Point  on  Ver- 
planck's  and  on  the  ships  in  the  river.  Two  flags  and 
two  standards  were  captured,  the  latter  those  of  the 
Seventeenth  Regiment.  The  total  number  of  prisoners 
taken  at  Stony  Point  was  five  hundred  and  forty-three, 
and  the  number  of  the  English  killed  was  sixty-three : 
that  of  their  wounded  is  not  given.  The  American 
loss  was  fifteen  non-commissioned  officers  and  privates 
killed,  and  eighty-three  officers  and  privates  wounded. 
It  is  worth  remarking  that  General  Wayne  in  his  official 
report  makes  no  mention  of  his  wound. 


STONY  POINT.  197 


Although  the  capture  of  the  fort  was  a  surprise 
to  friend  and  enemy  alike,  its  commander,  Colonel 
Johnston,  always  insisted  that  he  had  not  been  taken 
by  surprise,  but  that  every  man  was  at  his  post  when 
the  assault  was  made.  The  more  glory  for  the  as- 
sailants. 

The  successful  attack  upon  Stony  Point  by  General 
Wayne  made  a  prodigious  sensation  throughout  the 
country,  and  congratulations  poured  in  upon  him  from 
every  quarter.  People  seemed  at  a  loss  which  most  to 
admire,  the  extreme  brilliancy  of  the  courage  which 
had  led  him  to  undertake  so  perilous  a  feat  as  the 
assault  on  Stony  Point,  the  perfect  coolness  and  self- 
command  which  he  had  exhibited  when  conducting  it, 
the  skill  with  which  every  detail,  even  the  most  minute, 
had  been  arranged,  or  the  accuracy  with  which  every 
part  of  his  plan  seemed  fitted  to  the  rest.  The  per- 
fect success  which  had  attended  the  whole  business,  the 
proofs  which  he  had  given  of  the  possession  of  that 
fine  temper  of  the  true  patriot,  who  counts  as  nothing 
personal  danger  if  by  exposing  himself  to  it  he  can 
serve  his  country, — from  whatever  side  this  exploit  was 
viewed  it  was  regarded,  amidst  much  that  was  calcu- 
lated at  that  time  to  depress  and  discourage  those  who 
loved  their  country,  as  a  unique  proof  that  that  country 
still  possessed  some  men  among  her  soldiers  whose 
ideal  was  knightly  valor.  The  immediate  material  gain 
by  the  possession  of  Stony  Point  was  insignificant,  for 
the  post  was  a  short  time  afterwards  abandoned,  but  its 
moral  effect  in  strengthening  the  tone  of  public  feeling 
and  the  army  was  incalculable. 

The  congratulations  partook  of  the  character  of  the 


198  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

men  who  sent  them,  but  there  was  a  universal  chorus 
of  joy  and  praise.  On  the  1 6th  of  July  Washington 
issued  a  general  order  "  congratulating  the  army  on  the 
success  of  the  troops  under  General  Wayne,  who  last 
night,  with  the  Corps  of  Light  Infantry,  surprised  and 
took  the  enemy's  post  at  Stony  Point  with  the  whole 
garrison. "  On  the  21st  of  July,  in  his  despatch  to  Con- 
gress, the  general-in-chief  says,  "  To  the  encomiums  he 
[General  Wayne]  has  deservedly  bestowed  upon  the 
officers  and  men  under  his  command,  it  gives  me  pleas- 
ure to  add  that  his  own  conduct  through  the  whole  of 
this  arduous  enterprise  merits  the  warmest  approba- 
tion of  Congress.  He  improved  upon  the  plan  recom- 
mended by  me,  and  executed  it  in  a  manner  that  does 
signal  honor  to  his  judgment  and  bravery.  In  a  criti- 
cal moment  of  the  assault  he  received  a  flesh  wound  in 
the  head  with  a  musket  ball,  but  continued  leading  on 
his  men  with  unshaken  firmness." 

Congress  immediately  on  receipt  of  the  news  of  the 
capture  of  Stony  Point  adopted  unanimously  resolu- 
tions thanking  General  Wayne  for  his  brave,  prudent, 
and  soldierly  conduct,  including  in  its  thanks  all  Wayne's 
forces,  specifying  particularly  Colonel  Fleury  and  Major 
Steward,  Lieutenants  Gibbons  and  Knox,  and  Mr. 
Archer,  an  aide-de-camp  to  the  general,  and  commend- 
ing the  coolness,  discipline,  and  intrepidity  exhibited 
by  the  troops  on  the  occasion.  It  was  ordered  that  a 
gold  medal  commemorative  of  his  gallant  conduct  should 
be  presented  to  General  Wayne,  and  silver  medals  to 
Colonel  Fleury  and  Major  Steward  respectively,  and 
that  Messrs.  Gibbons,  Knox,  and  Archer  should  be 
appointed  captains  in  the  army  by  brevet.     His  old 


STONY  POINT.  199 


commander,  General  Schuyler,  wrote  to  him,  "  It  is  not 
the  least  part  of  my  satisfaction  to  learn  that  you  con- 
ducted the  expedition,  and  I  most  sincerely  congratu- 
late you  on  the  increase  of  honor  which  you  have 
acquired."  General  St.  Clair,  whose  relations  with 
Wayne  were,  as  we  have  seen,  somewhat  strained,  sent 
him  his  "  cordial  congratulations."  "  It  is  an  event  that 
makes  a  very  great  alteration  in  the  situation  of  affairs, 
and  must  have  important  consequences,  and  more 
glorious  from  its  being  effected  with  little  loss.  It  is, 
in  short,  the  completest  surprise  I  ever  heard  of." 
Even  his  old  enemy  Charles  Lee,  who  had  ventured,  as 
Wayne  supposed,  to  doubt  his  conduct  and  bravery  at 
Monmouth,  and  had  in  consequence  been  challenged 
by  Wayne  to  fight  a  duel,  which  was  yet  in  suspense, 
spoke  the  genuine  feeling  of  his  heart  when  he  wrote, 
"  I  do  most  sincerely  declare  that  your  action  in  the 
assault  of  Stony  Point  is  not  only  the  most  brilliant,  in 
my  opinion,  through  the  whole  course  of  this  war  on 
either  side,  but  that  it  is  one  of  the  most  brilliant  I  am 
acquainted  with  in  history, — upon  my  soul,  the  assault 
of  Schweidnitz  by  Marshal  Laudon  I  think  inferior  to 
it.  I  wish  you,  therefore,  most  sincerely,  joy  of  the 
laurels  you  have  so  deservedly  acquired,  and  that  you 
may  long  live  to  wear  them."  To  the  same  effect  wrote 
Generals  Greene,  Gates,  and  La  Fayette.  Indeed,  this 
is  one  of  the  few  actions  of  eclat  in  military  history  con- 
cerning which  popular  opinion  and  professional  opinion 
coincided.  No  adverse  criticism  was  ever  made  in  the 
army  on  the  conduct  of  General  Wayne  in  the  storming 
of  Stony  Point. 

The  voice  of  his  friends  and  of  the  public  outside 


200  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

the  army  was  loud  in  praise  of  his  gallant  conduct. 
Dr.  Rush  wrote  to  him,  "There  was  but  one  thing 
wanting  in  your  late  successful  attack  upon  Stony  Point 
to  complete  your  happiness,  and  that  is — the  wound 
you  received  should  have  affected  your  hearing, — for 
I  fear  you  will  be  stunned  through  those  organs  with 
your  own  praises/ '  Sharp  Delany,  to  whom  the  gen- 
eral had  announced  his  probable  death  in  the  assault  on 
the  fort,  sends  him  "  the  sincere  congratulations  of  a 
friend  on  your  safety  and  success.  They  go  to  you  with 
ten-fold  pleasure  as  I  know  you  are  determined  on 
every  opportunity  to  raise  the  reputation  of  your  coun- 
try's arms.  I  know  you  are  determined  to  do  this  with- 
out any  thought  of  self,  and  therefore  fear  much  for 
my  friend.  .  .  .  Every  heart  here  is  filled  with  a  due 
sense  of  your  bravery  and  the  service  you  have  done 
your  country."  The  President  of  Pennsylvania,  General 
Reed,  wrote  him  a  private  note  in  which  he  says,  "  It  is 
not  the  Surprise  of  a  post  or  the  Capture  of  500  men 
which  pleases  me  so  much  as  the  manner  and  the  ad- 
dress with  which  it  has  been  executed.  You  have  played 
their  own  game  upon  them,  and  eclipsed  the  glory  of 
the  English  bayonet  of  which  we  have  heard  so  much." 
The  Assembly  of  Pennsylvania,  even  if  it  had  been 
somewhat  unmindful  of  the  wants  of  its  own  troops, 
claimed  a  share  in  the  glory  which  they  and  their 
leader  had  achieved.  It  will  be  observed  how  warmly 
it  praised  their  humanity. 

In  General  Assembly  of  Penn'a. 

October  10,  1779. 
Resolved,   That  the  thanks  of  this  House  be  given  to  General 
Wayne  and  to  the  Officers  &  Soldiers  of  the  Penn'a  line  for  the 


STONY  POINT,  201 


courage  &  conduct  displayed  by  them  in  the  attack  on  Stony  Point, 
the  honor  they  have  reflected  on  the  State  to  which  they  belong,  the 
Clemency  they  showed  to  those  in  their  power  in  a  Situation,  when 
by  the  laws  of  war,  &  Stimulated  by  resentment  occasioned  by  the 
remembrance  of  a  former  Massacre,  they  would  have  been  justified 
in  putting  to  death  every  one  of  the  garrison,  will  transmit  their 
names  with  honor  to  the  latest  posterity  &  show  that  true  bravery 
&  humanity  are  inseparable. 

Unanimously  confirmed  by  the  Supreme  Executive  Council. 

Gerard,  the  French  Minister,  writes  on  27th  July,  1 779, 
to  Steuben,  "  Nothing  in  my  opinion  is  more  just,  my 
dear  Baron,  than  the  eulogy  you  bestow  upon  the  ex- 
pedition against  Stony  Point.  Plan,  Execution,  Cour- 
age, discipline,  Address,  energy,  in  short  the  most  rare 
qualities  were  found  united  there,  and  I  am  convinced 
that  the  Action  will  much  elevate  the  ideas  of  Europe 
about  the  military  qualities  of  the  Americans.  I  have 
sent  an  express  to  Baltimore  to  look  out  for  a  vessel 
which  may  immediately  carry  the  news  to  France.  As 
to  General  Wayne  I  believe  we  both  entertain  the  same 
opinion  of  him." 

General  Greene  writes  on  the  same  day  to  his  wife 
that  "  Steuben  thought  that  this  gallant  action  would 
fix  the  character  of  the  commanding  officer  in  any  part 
of  the  world." 

The  surprise  of  many  people  outside  the  garrison  at 
Stony  Point  at  its  capture  was  almost  as  great  as  that 
of  the  garrison  itself,  although  of  a  different  kind. 
Both  in  and  out  of  the  army  there  had  always  been 
an  impression  produced  by  such  men  as  Charles  Lee 
and  Gates  that  American  soldiers  were  totally  unfit  to 
cope  in  the  open  field  with  an  equal  number  of  trained 
and  disciplined  English  troops,  and  with  still  less  hope 


202  MAJOR  GENERAL    WAYNE. 

of  success  when  they  were  behind  intrenchments.  It 
will  be  remembered  that  in  the  previous  year,  just  be- 
fore the  battle  at  Monmouth,  fifteen  general  officers 
out  of  seventeen  gave  it  as  their  opinion  in  a  council 
of  war  that  it  would  not  be  safe  to  attack  the  retreat- 
ing British  army,  and  that  it  should  be  permitted  to 
escape  with  its  long  baggage-train  without  molestation. 
Neither  Washington  nor  Wayne  held  this  opinion,  and 
the  battle  of  Monmouth  proved  that  they  were  right, 
and  that  the  army  that  fought  there  was  a  totally  differ- 
ent body  from  what  it  had  been  before  its  instruction 
in  tactics  by  Von  Steuben  at  Valley  Forge.  Still,  there 
were  many  doubters,  and  probably  no  general  officer 
could  have  been  found  at  that  time  save  Wayne  who 
would  have  undertaken  with  any  hope  of  success  the 
perilous  enterprise  of  capturing  the  enemy  in  his 
stronghold.  The  assault  on  Stony  Point  was  an  opera- 
tion which  every  one  admitted  required  for  its  success- 
ful achievement  on  the  part  of  the  assailants  qualities 
of  discipline  and  valor  far  greater  than  those  needed 
in  ordinary  military  operations.  Wayne,  however,  as 
he  was  in  the  habit  of  saying,  "  knew  his  soldiers,  and 
they  knew  him,,,  and  nothing  which  soldiers  had  ever 
achieved  seemed  to  them  too  formidable  for  him  to  un- 
dertake with  a  good  hope  of  success.  The  result  was, 
as  we  have  seen,  the  success  of  an  enterprise  more 
bold  in  its  conception  and  more  dangerous  in  its  exe- 
cution than  any  which  had  been  hitherto  undertaken 
on  this  continent.  The  history  of  the  scaling  of  the 
Heights  of  Abraham  by  Wolfe  has  been  consecrated 
in  British  song  and  story,  and  Wolfe  has  a  most  con- 
spicuous shrine  in  the  Valhalla  as  one  of  the  great 


STONY  POINT,  203 


heroes  of  the  English  race,  and  yet  what  in  point 
of  difficulty  and  danger  were  the  climbing  of  those 
heights  and  the  subsequent  capture  of  Quebec  to  a 
night  assault  on  the  garrison  at  Stony  Point  without 
the  use  of  fire-arms,  that  garrison  being  protected  by 
redoubts  and  earthworks  and  defending  themselves 
by  musketry  and  a  formidable  artillery  ?  No  wonder 
that  Washington  told  Wayne,  when  he  was  about  to 
embark  on  this  enterprise,  that  in  such  an  extremity 
"  success  depended  not  so  much  upon  the  numbers  as 
upon  the  fortitude  of  the  men." 

The  great  condition  of  success  on  such  occasions,  as 
we  have  said,  is  a  union  of  discipline  and  valor.  Such 
a  combination  has  always  been  the  ideal  of  the  highest 
military  efficiency,  and  it  has  been  reached  in  other 
armies  by  incentives  to  action  quite  different  from  those 
which  controlled  the  soldiers  of  the  Revolution.  We 
do  not,  of  course,  mean  the  blind  obedience  which  is 
the  result  of  a  stern  discipline,  and  which  moulds  men 
into  mere  machines  for  executing  the  orders  of  their 
leader,  whatever  those  orders  may  be.  In  modern  times 
motives  of  a  different  kind  appeal  to  the  martial  instincts 
of  the  soldier.  Take,  for  instance,  the  combat  at  the 
bridge  of  Lodi  in  1796,  as  an  illustration  (to  speak 
only  of  modern  times),  where  the  French  army,  under 
the  guidance  of  Bonaparte,  forced  the  passage  of  the 
bridge  under  a  murderous  fire  by  the  Austrians,  which 
threatened  the  life  of  every  assailant,  but  where  no 
one  hesitated  for  a  moment  to  advance.  This  has 
always  been  regarded  as  a  singularly  heroic  act,  and 
much  of  Napoleon's  early  prestige  was  due  to  his 
having  led  in  the  assault  at  that  time.      But  it  must 


204  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

not  be  forgotten  that  in  that  day  military  glory  was  the 
ambitious  dream  of  every  Frenchman.  The  meanest 
soldier  in  the  Army  of  Italy  was  in  his  own  opinion 
and  in  that  of  his  countrymen  a  far  more  important 
personage  than  the  richest  banker  of  Paris.  He  felt 
and  acted  in  the  hour  of  supreme  danger  as  if  he  car- 
ried a  marshal's  baton  in  his  knapsack.  So,  again, 
take  the  siege  of  St.  Sebastian  in  Spain  in  1813,  where 
the  "  forlorn  hope"  of  the  British  army  rushed  forward 
to  meet  almost  certain  destruction  while  scaling  the 
walls  of  that  fortress.  When  we  seek  the  motive  of 
so  prodigal  and  reckless  an  exposure  of  life,  we  recall 
the  traditions  of  heroic  deeds  illustrating  the  history  of 
certain  regiments  which  were  cherished  with  peculiar 
pride,  and  which  formed  a  powerful  incentive  to  gallant 
action  in  the  hour  of  danger.  We  find  in  these  motives 
the  source  of  a  powerful  esprit  de  corps,  which  has 
driven  English  soldiers  forward  where  the  danger  of 
death  has  been  greatest,  but  where  all  fear  has  been 
overcome  by  a  thirst  for  glory  in  the  individual  and  by 
pride  in  the  reputation  of  the  regiment.  Motives  such 
as  these  are  familiar  in  military  history  as  leading  to 
great  achievements,  but  none  of  them  seem  in  any 
degree  to  have  actuated  our  Revolutionary  soldiers, 
although  it  is  possible  that  some  of  the  officers  may 
have  been  occasionally  stimulated  by  a  love  of  military 
glory.  Our  soldiers  did  not  form  a  distinct  military 
class,  as  elsewhere.  There  were  probably  few  who 
cared  for  promotion  in  the  army,  and  still  fewer  who 
were  moved  by  what  may  be  called  professional  pride. 
Our  soldiers  did  not  come  from  that  class  who  could 
not  find  any  other  employment  in  life  than  soldiering ; 


STONY  POINT.  205 


on  the  contrary,  there  probably  was  no  private  man  in 
the  ranks  who  would  not  have  bettered  his  material  con- 
dition by  leaving  the  army.  They  knew  that  there  could 
be  no  permanent  military  establishment  here  as  in  other 
countries,  with  its  aristocratic  hierarchy,  its  social  pre- 
eminence, and  its  class  ascendency.  As  citizens  they 
would  probably  have  been  the  first  to  resist  the  creation 
of  an  army  like  those  of  other  nations,  for  they  knew, 
none  better,  that,  with  many  noble  uses,  a  standing 
army  had  been  found  elsewhere  to  be  the  greatest 
danger  to  that  liberty  of  the  citizen  for  which  they  were 
contending.  Such  an  exploit  as  that  of  Wayne  would 
have  made  him  in  England  a  peer  with  high  rank  and 
large  money  rewards,  and  have  given  him,  in  case  he 
had  fallen,  a  monument  at  St.  Paul's.  Here  it  did  not 
even  promote  him  to  be  a  major-general.  The  truth 
is,  the  army  was  composed  of  men  who  were  citizens 
before  they  were  soldiers,  whose  education  and  habits 
had  taught  them  that  they  were  fighting  not  for  mere 
military  distinction  and  reputation,  for  which  they  cared 
little,  but  for  the  supremacy  of  law.  Such  men  had  but 
one  motive  to  support  them  in  engaging  cheerfully  and 
with  determination  in  an  enterprise  so  perilous  as  the 
attack  on  Stony  Point.  This  great  exploit  is  to  be 
looked  upon  less  as  a  display  of  the  military  genius  of 
Wayne  or  of  the  intrepidity  of  his  followers  than  as  an 
example  of  what  men  who  have  had  none  of  the  train- 
ing of  European  soldiers,  and  who  are  not  moved  by 
dreams  of  military  glory,  can  do  when  called  upon  to  face 
extremest  danger  under  the  promptings  of  sternest  duty. 
Many  people  when  they  speak  of  Stony  Point  re- 
member that  the  attack  upon  it  was  led  by  a  man  who 


2o6  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

bore  during* a  portion  of  the  war  the  name  of  "Mad 
Anthony,''  and  whatever  was  perilous  about  the  enter- 
prise, and  about  others  of  a  similar  kind  in  which  he  was 
engaged,  they  explain  by  supposing  that  their  leader 
was  a  reckless  madman.  What  has  been  said  concern- 
ing Wayne's  character  and  career  has  been  said  to 
little  purpose  if  it  does  not  prove  that  in  all  his  military 
qualities  he  was  directly  the  opposite  to  the  rash,  heed- 
less, and  dashing  officer  whom  he  is  sometimes  repre- 
sented to  have  been.  Without  discussing  here  the  ques- 
tion of  his  military  genius  and  capacity,  it  may  suffice 
to  consider  how  it  was  regarded  by  Washington  himself. 
We  have  seen  that,  although  he  was  only  a  brigadier- 
general  during  the  war,  he  was  always  intrusted  by 
Washington  with  the  separate  command  of  a  division, 
or  of  large  detachments,  on  special  service  of  impor- 
tance. He  was  always  consulted  by  the  general  before 
he  undertook  any  such  movements,  and  although  Wayne 
differed  in  opinion  very  often  from  the  other  generals, 
almost  always  advocating  "  active"  measures  while  they 
did  not  think  them  prudent,  Washington  never  lost 
confidence  in  him,  but  always  estimated  at  their  true 
value  his  soldierly  qualities ;  nor  was  there  ever  an 
action  in  which  he  was  engaged  where  he  was  blamed 
for  any  rash  or  imprudent  movement.  He  was  alert, 
active,  vigilant,  and  these  qualities  sometimes  enabled 
him  to  snatch  victory  from  the  jaws  of  defeat,  when 
those  who  lacked  the  energy  which  stirred  his  blood 
faltered.  When  "the  war-blast  sounded  in  his  ears" 
he  was,  it  is  true,  eager  and  impetuous,  his  whole  soul 
absorbed  in  the  work  on  hand,  absolutely  fearless  of 
personal  risk  where  exposure  might  bring  victory  and 


STONY  POINT.  207 


success  to  his  troops,  but  never  foolhardy  nor  reckless, 
and  sparing  of  the  lives  of  his  soldiers  in  the  hour  of 
the  fiercest  battle.  "  His  impetuosity,  like  that  of  Paul 
of  Tarsus,"  says  Mr.  Dawson,  "has  been  mistaken  for 
madness  by  some  of  those  who  witnessed  its  effects, 
but,  like  the  madness  of  St.  Paul,  that  of  Mad  Anthony 
Wayne,  so  called,  was  only  the  outpouring  of  an  earn- 
est, an  honest,  and  a  philanthropic  heart." 

It  was  also  his  constant  care  of  his  soldiers  which 
won  their  confidence  and  was  the  cause  of  their  strong 
attachment  to  him.  It  enabled  him  to  bring  the  Penn- 
sylvania line,  as  long  as  it  was  treated  fairly  and 
justly  by  the  State  authorities,  to  a  condition  of  effi- 
ciency and  discipline  which  made  it,  in  his  opinion,  the 
elite  of  the  army. 

After  all,  he  was  not  called  "  Mad  Anthony"  until 
1 78 1,  and  not  then  because  he  was  recognized  as  a 
beau  sabreur  or  a  dashing  dragoon.  The  way  in  which 
he  happened  to  gain  that  sobriquet  is  a  curious  illustra- 
tion of  the  manner  in  which  certain  nicknames  become 
fastened  upon  illustrious  personages.  It  seems,  ac- 
cording to  Mr.  Moore,  in  his  Life  of  Wayne,  that  one 
"Jemmy  the  Rover,"  as  he  was  called,  was  attached  to 
Wayne's  camp  in  the  year  1781,  and  with  him  originated 
the  cognomen  of  "  Mad  Anthony."  The  real  name  of 
"Jemmy"  is  not  given,  but  he  was  an  Irishman,  and 
regularly  enlisted  in  the  Pennsylvania  line.  He  was 
subject  to  fits  of  insanity,  or  at  least  claimed  to  be  so, 
but  probably  these  were  not  of  a  very  marked  type,  for 
he  was  employed  frequently  by  Wayne  as  a  spy,  and  he 
always  returned  from  the  British  lines  with  correct  and 
important  information.    At  times,  however,  he  was  noisy 


208  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE, 

and  troublesome,  and  on  one  occasion  he  was  ordered 
to  the  guard-house.  On  his  way  thither  he  suddenly 
halted,  and  asked  the  sergeant  of  the  guard  by  whose 
orders  he  had  been  arrested.  By  those  of  the  general,  he 
was  told.  After  a  few  hours  he  was  released,  and  he 
then  inquired  whether  Anthony  (the  name  he  gave  Gen- 
eral Wayne)  was  "mad"  (meaning  angry)  or  "in  fun" 
when  he  was  placed  under  arrest.  He  was  told  that 
the  general  was  much  displeased  with  his  disorderly 
conduct,  and  that  if  it  occurred  again  he  would  not 
only  be  confined  but  would  receive  twenty-nine  lashes 
well  laid  on.  "  Then,"  exclaimed  Jemmy,  "  Anthony  is 
mad!  Farewell  to  you ;  clear  the  coast  for  the  Com- 
modore, *  Mad  Anthony's'  friend." 

General  Wayne  announced  to  the  commander-in- 
chief  the  capture  of  Stony  Point  in  the  following 
despatch : 

General  Wayne  to  General  Washington. 

Stony  Point,  17th  July  1779. 

Sir, — I  have  now  the  honor  of  giving  your  Excellency  a  full  and 
particular  acct  of  the  Reduction  of  this  post  by  the  light  troop 
under  my  Command. 

On  the  15th  Instant  at  12  OCiock  we  took  up  our  line  of  March 
from  Sandy  Beach  distant  about  14  Miles  from  this  place — the  roads 
being  exceeding  bad  &  narrow  &  having  to  pass  over  high  Mountains 
&  thro'  such  deep  Morasses  and  difficult  defiles  that  we  were  Obliged 
the  greatest  part  of  the  way  to  move  in  single  files, — at  8  OCiock  in 
the  evening  the  van  arrived  at  a  Mr.  Springsteels  within  one  Mile  & 
a  half  of  the  enemy's  lines  &  formed  into  columns  as  fast  as  they 
came  up  agreeable  to  the  Order  of  Battle  herewith  transmitted  (vide 
Order) —  Col'l  Febiger's  &  Col.  Meigs's  Regiments  with  Major 
Hull's  detatchment  formed  the  Right  Column — Col.  Butler's  Regi- 
ment and  Major  Murfrees'  two  Companies  the  Left. 

The  troops  remained  in  this  position  until  several  of  the  principal 


STONY  POINT.  209 


Officers  with  myself  had  returned  from  Reconnoitring  the  works, — 
at  half  after  Eleven  (being  the  hour  fixed  on)  the  whole  moved  for- 
ward— the  van  of  the  Right  was  composed  of  One  hundred  &  fifty 
volunteers  properly  Officered  with  fixed  Bayonets  and  Unloaded 
Muskets  under  the  Command  of  Lieut.  Col.  Fleury  preceded  by 
twenty  picked  men  headed  by  a  Vigilant  Officer  to  remove  the 
Abbatis  &  Other  Obstructions. 

The  Van  of  the  Left  consisted  of  One  Hundred  Volunteers  also 
with  fixed  Bayonets  &  Unloaded  Muskets  under  the  Conduct  of 
Major  Steward — these  were  likewise  preceded  by  twenty  men  under 
a  Brave  &  Determined  Officer. 

At  12  OClock  the  assault  was  to  begin  on  the  Right  &  left  flanks 
of  the  Enemy's  Works  &  Major  Murfrees  to  amuse  them  in  front, — 
but  from  the  Obstructions  thrown  in  our  way  &  a  deep  Morass  sur- 
rounding their  whole  front  and  overflowed  by  the  tide  rendering  the 
approaches  more  difficult  than  at  first  apprehended,  it  was  about 
twenty  minutes  after  twelve  before  the  assault  began — previous  to 
which  I  placed  myself  at  the  Head  of  Febiger's  Regiment  or  Right 
Column  &  gave  the  troops  the  most  pointed  Orders  not  to  attempt 
to  fire,  but  put  their  whole  dependance  on  the  Bayonet — which  was 
most  faithfully  &  Literally  Observed, — neither  the  deep  Morass,  the 
formidable  &  double  rows  of  abbatis  or  the  high  &  strong  works  in 
front  &  flank  could  damp  the  ardor  of  the  troops — who  in  the  face 
of  a  most  tremendous  and  Incessant  fire  of  Musketry  &  from  Artil- 
lery loaded  with  shells  &  Grape-shot  forced  their  way  at  the  point 
of  the  Bayonet  thro'  every  Obstacle, — both  Columns  meeting  in  the 
Center  of  the  Enemy's  works  nearly  at  the  same  Instant. 

Too  much  praise  cannot  be  given  to  Lieut.  Colonel  Fleury  (who 
struck  the  enemy's  standard  with  his  own  hand)  &  to  Major  Steward 
who  Commanded  the  Advance  parties,  for  their  brave  &  prudent 
Conduct;  Colonels  Butler  Meigs  &  Febiger  conducted  themselves 
with  that  coolness,  bravery  &  perseverance  that  ever  will  ensure  suc- 
cess. Lieut.  Col.  Hay  was  wounded  in  the  thigh  bravely  fighting  at 
the  head  of  his  Battalion —  I  should  take  up  too  much  of  your  Ex- 
cellency's time  was  I  to  particularise  every  Individual  who  deserves 
it  for  his  bravery  on  this  Occasion,  however  I  must  acknowledge  my- 
self Indebted  to  Major  Lee  for  the  frequent  &  useful  Intelligence  he 
gave  me  &  which  Contributed  much  to  the  success  of  the  enterprise — 

15 


210  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

&  it's  with  the  greatest  pleasure  I  acknowledge  to  you  that  I  was  sup- 
ported in  the  attack  by  all  the  Officers  &  soldiers  to  the  utmost  of 
my  wishes  &  Return  my  thanks  to  the  Officers  &  Privates  of  Artillery 
for  their  alertness  in  turning  the  Cannon  against  the  enemy's  works 
at  Verplank's  point  &  their  shiping  which  slipt  their  Cables  and  Im- 
mediately droped  down  the  River. 

I  should  be  wanting  in  gratitude  was  I  to  omit  mentioning  Capt. 
Fishbourn  &  Mr.  Archer  my  two  Aids  De  Camp,  who  on  every 
Occasion  shewed  the  greatest  Intrepidity  &  Supported  me  into  the 
works  after  I  had  received  my  wound  in  passing  the  last  Abbatis. — 

Enclosed  are  Returns  of  the  killed  &  wounded  belonging  to  the  Light 
Corps,  as  also  that  of  the  enemy  together  with  the  number  of  prisoners 
taken,  likewise  of  the  Ordnance  &  Stores  found  in  the  Garrison. 

I  had  forgot  to  Inform  your  Excellency  that  previous  to  the  attack 
I  had  drawn  General  Muhlenburg  into  my  rear  who  with  three 
hundred  men  of  his  Brigade  took  post  on  the  opposite  side  of  the 
Marsh,  was  to  be  in  readiness  either  to  support  us,  or  to  cover  a  Re- 
treat incase  of  accident  &  have  not  the  least  doubt  of  his  faithfully 
&  Effectually  executing  either  had  there  been  an  Occasion  for  it. 

The  Humanity  of  our  brave  soldiery  who  scorned  to  take  the  lives 
of  vanquished  foes  calling  for  mercy  reflects  the  highest  Honor  on  them 
&  accounts  for  so  few  of  the  Enemy  being  killed  on  the  occasion. 

I  am  not  fully  satisfied  with  the  manner  in  which  I  have  mentioned 
Lieut.  Gibbons  of  the  6th  &  Lieut.  Knox  of  the  9th  Penns'a  Regiment 
the  two  gentlemen  who  led  the  advanced  parties  of  each  Column — 
the  first  had  17  men  killed  &  wounded  out  of  twenty — the  latter 
though  not  quite  so  unfortunate  in  that  respect  was  nevertheless 
equally  exposed — they  both  behaved  with  an  Intrepidity  &  address 
that  would  have  been  a  Credit  to  the  oldest  soldier. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be  with  singular  Respect, 
Your  Excellency's  most  Obt.  &  very 
Hum'l  Serv't 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

His  Excellency 

Gen'l  Washington.1 

1  The  official  despatches  announcing  the  capture  of  Stony  Point,  ex- 
cept that  of  Wayne  himself,  and  the  correspondence  which  grew  out  of 
the  events  connected  with  it,  will  be  found  in  the  Appendix,  No.  III. 


CHAPTER    VI. 

Arnold's  treason,  and  the  revolt  of  the  Pennsyl- 
vania line. 

If  Wayne  had  counted  upon  the  Continental  com- 
missaries for  a  more  regular  and  abundant  supply  of 
food  for  the  Light  Infantry  Corps  than  had  been  pro- 
vided by  the  State  authorities  for  the  troops  of  the 
Pennsylvania  line,  he  was  mistaken  in  his  calculations. 
The  curse  of  maladministration  seems  to  have  afflicted 
all  those  with  whom  General  Wayne  had  anything  to 
do,  whether  the  officials  were  those  of  the  State  or  of 
the  Continent.  Thus,  on  the  4th  of  October,  1779,  he 
thus  writes  to  the  commissary  of  subsistence :  "  The 
situation  of  this  corps  requires  the  utmost  exertion 
in  your  department  to  prevent  mutiny  and  desertion." 
From  the  answer  it  seems,  among  other  excuses,  that 
the  teams  were  idle,  the  wagon-master  being  absent  in 
search  of  substitutes  for  those  who  had  deserted  ;  and 
this  not  in  the  wilderness,  but  in  a  comparatively 
populous  district  in  the  State  of  New  York. 

The  numbers  of  the  corps  seem  to  have  kept  up 
pretty  well,  however,  only  twenty-six  rank  and  file  and 
fifteen  non-commissioned  officers  having  been  absent 
on  the  15th  of  October,  1779, — a  fact  which  perhaps 
may  be  taken  to  prove  how  much  pride  the  soldiers 
must  have  had  in  belonging  to  so  distinguished  a  body, 
and  how  admirable  was  their  discipline.  Still,  in  No- 
vember Wayne  is  compelled  to  complain  again  of  the 
incapacity  or  neglect  of  the  commissary  of  the  Light 

211 


212  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

Corps,  as  it  was  at  that  time  destitute  of  articles  es- 
sential to  its  comfort.  In  the  same  month  one  hun- 
dred and  twenty  men  of  his  command  are  reported 
as  quite  barefoot,  and  in  the  latter  part  of  December, 
General  Washington  having  directed  that  the  Virginia 
line  should  proceed  to  Philadelphia,  in  obedience  to  an 
order  of  Congress,  General  Wayne  is  obliged  to  reply, 
"  Colonel  Febiger  will  march  to-morrow  at  8  a.m.,  but 
for  want  of  shoes  he  must  carry  a  great  many  of  his 
people  in  wagons."  No  wonder  that  in  the  last  order 
issued  by  General  Wayne  before  disbanding  the  corps 
and  directing  them  to  return  to  the  "  lines"  of  their 
respective  States  he  should  speak  of  the  accumulated 
distress  caused  by  the  extremity  of  cold,  hunger,  and 
nakedness  which  had  rendered  the  troops  desperate. 
Why  it  should  have  been  determined  to  break  up 
an  organization  so  distinguished  as  the  Light  Infantry 
Corps,  after  it  had  rendered  such  gallant  service,  at 
the  close  of  one  campaign,  it  is  difficult  to  understand. 
The  action  of  Congress  in  detaching  one  of  its  most 
serviceable  regiments  (the  Virginia  regiment)  may 
have  rendered  such  a  step  necessary.  Be  that  as  it 
may,  the  officers  of  the  corps  parted  from  Wayne  with 
sincere  regret  and  many  expressions  of  their  good 
wishes.  The  officers  of  the  regiment  from  the  Virginia 
line,  the  field  officers  of  the  corps,  and  those  com- 
manding the  artillery,  as  will  appear  from  the  following 
letters,  joined  in  expressing  their  respect  and  affection 
for  their  commander.  Wayne,  as  soon  as  arrange- 
ments for  the  disbandment  of  his  troops  were  carried 
out,  asked  the  commander-in-chief  (February  4,  1 780) 
to  be  employed  in  any  capacity  he  might  think  proper. 


ARNOLD'S   TREASON.  213 

Second  River  December  9th  1779. 

Dear  Sir, — The  Officers  of  the  Virginia  Line,  who  have  had  the 
honor  of  being  commanded  by  you  in  the  Light  Infantry  beg  leave 
to  return  you  their  sincere  Thanks  for  the  Repeated  Marks  of  Esteem 
&  Politeness  you  have  express'd  towards  them. — 

They  entertain  the  highest  Veneration  &  Respect  for  your  Char- 
acter both  as  a  Military  Officer  and  a  Gentleman. 

Under  these  circumstances  we  feel  the  greatest  Regret  especially 
at  so  short  Notice  to  be  separated  from  a  Corps  we  love  and  a 
General  we  honour. — 

Accept  therefore  Dear  Sir  these  Sentiments  of  our  Esteem,  and 
believe  us,  after  wishing  you  every  future  happiness,  Success  &  pros- 
perity to  be  with  the  most  Cordial  Affection  and  Respect 
Your  most  obedient  and  Most  humble  servants. 

At  the  Request  and  in  Behalf  of  the  V'a  officers 

Christian  Febiger  Colonel. 
The  Honorable 

Brigadier  General  Wayne. 

Light  Infantry  Camp 
Second  River  9th  Dec  1779 

Dear  Sir, — The  approbation  of  my  Conduct  by  a  Corps  so 
respectable  as  the  Officers  of  the  Virginia  Light  Infantry,  must  In- 
evitably afford  the  sincerest  pleasure ; — that  attention  which  they 
are  pleased  to  attribute  to  politeness,  was  the  effect  of  their  own 
Merit,  which  will  always  Insure  the  Esteem  of  the  General  who  has 
the  honor  to  Command  them. 

Permit  me  therefore  to  return  my  most  grateful  thanks  to  them  & 
you  for  this  mark  of  your  Respect,  &  believe  rne  to  be  with  singular 
Esteem 

Your  most  obt  &  very 

Humble  Servant 

Ant'v  Wayne. 
Col.  Febiger 

Comm.  of  the  Virginia  Light  Infantry. 

Light  Infantry  Camp  Second  River 
Dec.  31st  1779. 
Sir, — In  behalf  of  the  officers  of  Artillery  I  am  to  assure  you 
that  it's  with  the  greatest  reluctance  they  view  the  approaching 


214  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

period  of  a  separation  from  the  Command  of  a  General  whose 
particular  attention,  &  politeness  to  them  demand  their  most  grateful 
acknowledgments — 

Your  conduct,  &  acknowledged  good  Character  as  an  officer  & 
Gentleman  must  ever  meet  with  the  approbation  of  those  who  have 
the  honour  of  serving  under  you,  and  altho  a  separation  will  now 
take  place,  yet  to  look  forward,  we  have  a  hope  that  at  a  future  day, 
we  shall  again  be  happy  enough  to  meet  with  that  General  who  we 
are  confident  will  lead  us  on  to  glory  &  crown  us  with  honour 

I  am  with  the  Gentlemen  of  this  Corps — 

Very  respectfully 

J.  Pendleton. 

Officers  of  the  Light  Infantry  Corps  to  General  Wayne. 

Light  Infantry  Camp 
At  Second  River 

Jan'y  1st  1780 
Sir, — The  close  of  the  Campaign  &  the  dissolution  of  the  Corps 
necessarily  calls  us  from  under  your  immediate  Command,  &  in  Jus- 
tice to  our  own  feelings  we  beg  leave  to  tell  you,  that  our  experience 
of  your  abilities  as  an  Officer  has  justly  gaind  you  that  confidence 
essentially  necessary  to  ensure  success  in  Military  operations.  The 
uniform  politeness  &  attention  you  have  paid  to  all,  has  endeard 
you  to  every  individual  under  your  command ;  and  has  in  great 
measure  been  the  means  of  preserving  a  perfect  unanimity  &  Har- 
mony, seldom  seen  in  a  Corps  formd  by  detachments  from  different 
States. 

Be  assured,  Sir,  this  does  not  proceed  from  the  Common  motives 
of  adulatory  address,  but  is  dictated  by  the  warmest  Sentiments  of 
gratitude,  from  a  Conviction  that  we  are  eminently  indebted  to  your 
Care  for  the  Happiness  we  have  enjoyd  thro  the  course  of  this  Cam- 
paign.    We  are  with  the  Highest  Respect  esteem  and  affection 

Your  most  obd't  Hble  Servts — 
R.  Putnam,  Col'l  L't  I 
Signd  at  the  unan-  Rich'd  Butler  Col'l  L't  I 

imous  request  of  Albert  Chapman  Maj'r  Com'd 

the  Officers  in  the  Jas.  Pendleton  Cap't 

Light  Infantry.  Comm.  of  Light 

Artillery 


ARNOLD'S   TREASON.  215 

Light  Infantry  Camp  Second 
River  2nd  Jan.  1780. 

Gentlemen, — The  pleasure  I  experience  in  your  approbation  of 
my  Conduct,  gives  a  sensation  which  words  can  not  express —  the 
unanimity,  Mutual  Confidence  &  friendship  which  (at  this  period 
of  the  War)  so  conspicuously  pervades  a  Corps,  formed  by  Detach- 
ments from  different  States,  must  produce  a  conviction  to  the  World, 
that  we  are  not  to  be  Conquered,  by  any  Idle  notion  of  a  Disunion, 
— nor  forced  from  the  field,  but  by  superior  numbers. 

The  esteem  &  affection  which  you  are  pleased  to  express  for  me, 
is  truly  Reciprocal  &  it's  with  sincere  pleasure  I  acknowledge  that 
by  your  good  Conduct  &  example  this  Corps  has  acquired  the  Dis- 
tinction it  now  holds. 

The  Dissolution  of  a  body  of  troops  with  which  I  have  enjoyed  so 
great  a  share  of  happiness,  would  give  me  much  pain,  was  I  not 
confident  that  those  sentiments  which  have  so  firmly  united  the 
American  Light  Infantry  (whilst  embodied)  will  not  diminish  by  a 
temporary  separation. 

Permit  me  therefore  to  wish  you  an  easy  and  pleasant  March,  &  a 
joyful  meeting  with  your  friends  &  brother  Officers  in  the  Line  of 
the  Army,  &  to  assure  you  that  I  am  with  much  Esteem 

Your  most  Ob't 
&  very 

Hum'l  Servt. 
Ant'y  Wayne. 

Colonels  Putnam  &  Butler 

Major  Chapman 

Capt.  Pendleton  &  the 

other  Officers  of  the 

Light  Corps. 

Wayne  at  once  returned  to  his  home  in  Chester 
County,  but  on  the  opening  of  the  campaign  of  1780 
(on  the  1 8th  of  May)  Washington  wrote  to  him,  "I 
shall  be  very  happy  to  see  you  at  camp  again,  and 
hope  you  will,  without  hesitation,  resume  your  com- 
mand in  the  Penn'a  line."     Wayne  rejoined  the  army 


216  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

in  a  few  days  at  Morristown,  his  movements  being  prob- 
ably quickened  by  a  letter  from  Colonel  Johnston  from 
camp  of  the  7th  of  May.  In  this  letter  Johnston  says, 
"  Shall  I  endeavor  to  paint  the  manifold  sufferings  of 
the  honest  soldiery,  the  distresses  of  the  officers,  the 
wounded  feelings  of  our  illustrious  General,  and  the 
complicated  misfortunes  attending  our  country  in  con- 
sequence of  the  state  of  our  finances  ?" 

At  this  time  Sir  Henry  Clinton  had  returned  from 
the  South,  and  was  enlisting  Tory  refugees  with  a  view 
of  capturing  the  military  stores  deposited  at  Morristown. 
Washington  moved  towards  the  Highlands,  fearing  that 
the  expedition  might  be  intended  to  capture  the  strong- 
holds there.  The  regular  force  of  the  British  at  New 
York  was  twelve  thousand  men,  in  addition  to  which 
they  had  armed  about  four  thousand  refugees.  The 
American  army  at  the  same  time  was  less  than  three 
thousand  in  number.  The  British  advanced  to  Spring- 
field, in  New  Jersey,  which  they  burned,  but  retreated 
to  their  post  at  Elizabethtown  before  Wayne,  who  had 
been  detached  with  a  brigade  to  harass  them,  could 
reach  them. 

The  campaign  of  1780  began  under  conditions  even 
more  gloomy  and  discouraging  than  that  of  1779.  The 
Pennsylvania  troops  had  dwindled  away  in  the  most 
extraordinary  manner.  By  the  monthly  return  of  Sep- 
tember, 1780,  there  were  present  in  the  eleven  regi- 
ments of  foot  two  thousand  and  five  and  absent  two 
thousand  five  hundred  and  eleven  ;  in  other  words, 
more  than  one-half  of  their  strength  was  not  present 
with  the  colors,  and  those  who  were  present  formed 
about  two-thirds,  of   Washington's    army.     With   this 


ARNOLD'S   TREASON.  217 

small  force  he  was  obliged  to  march  and  countermarch 
between  Morristown  and  West  Point,  so  as  to  meet 
any  assault  which  might  be  made  by  the  British  at  New 
York  on  any  point  of  this  long  line. 

It  was  apparent  that  the  difficulty  with  which  we  had 
to  contend  in  achieving  our  independence  was  mainly 
a  financial  one,  and  that  the  true  path  out  of  the  slough 
of  despond  into  which  we  had  been  plunged  was  not  yet 
discovered.  One  of  Wayne's  correspondents,  writing 
in  October,  evidently  thought  that  the  crisis  was  at 
hand.  He  says  he  "  met  Steuben  at  President  Reed's, 
and  he  thought  that  the  whole  army  would  dissolve  by 
the  first  of  January  unless  specie  could  be  obtained." 
Wayne  recommended  the  extraordinary  step  of  sug- 
gesting to  France  that  unless  she  provided  specie  we 
should  be  obliged  to  give  up  the  contest.  "  Money," 
he  says,  "is  now  out  of  the  question.  The  soldiers 
have  not  seen  a  single  paper  dollar  for  a  long  time." 

General  Washington  writes  about  this  time  to  Hon. 
Joseph  Jones, — 

"It  does  not  require  with  you,  I  am  sure,  argument  at  this  late 
hour  to  prove  that  there  is  no  set  of  men  in  the  United  States  (con- 
sidered as  a  body)  that  have  made  the  same  sacrifices  of  their  interest 
in  the  support  of  the  common  cause  as  the  officers  of  the  American 
army — that  nothing  but  a  love  of  their  country,  of  honor,  and  a 
desire  of  seeing  their  labors  crowned  with  success  could  possibly 
induce  them  to  continue  one  moment  in  the  service,  that  no  officer 
can  live  upon  his  pay,  that  hundreds,  having  spent  their  little  all  in 
addition  to  their  scanty  public  allowance,  have  resigned  because  they 
could  no  longer  support  themselves  as  officers,  that  numbers  are,  at 
this  moment,  rendered  unfit  for  duty  for  want  of  clothing,  while  the 
rest  are  wasting  their  property  and  some  of  them  verging  fast  to  the 
gulph  of  poverty  and  distress. — 
"  Tafpan,  August  13,  1780." 


218  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

The  soldiers  had  hoped  that  the  presence  of  a  com- 
mittee of  Congress  in  camp  would  do  something  with 
that  body  to  alleviate  their  sufferings,  but  they  had 
been  disappointed.  "The  army,"  say  the  committee 
who  visited  the  camp  at  the  solicitation  of  Washington 
and  Wayne,  "was  unpaid  for  five  months;  it  seldom 
had  more  than  six  days'  provision  in  advance ;  it  was 
for  a  number  of  days  on  different  occasions  without 
meat ;  it  was  destitute  of  forage  ;  medical  supplies  were 
exhausted,  and  in  short  every  department  of  the  army 
was  without  money  or  credit,  and  the  patience  of  the 
soldiers  was  on  the  point  of  being  exhausted." 

In  the  midst  of  all  these  embarrassments  the  sterling 
qualities  of  Wayne's  character,  not  merely  as  a  military 
leader  but  also  as  a  devoted  patriot,  became  more  and 
more  conspicuous.  Surrounded  by  men  clamorous  in 
their  complaints  that  the  State  had  not  done  its  duty 
towards  them,  and  therefore  ready  to  desert  their  ranks, 
and  by  officers  constantly  threatening  to  resign  because 
they  were  not  paid  or  because  they  were  not  satisfied 
with  the  rank  assigned  them,  he  was  always  ready  to 
fight  the  enemy,  if  there  was  any  prospect  of  inflicting 
injury  upon  them,  even  while  he  was  engaged  in  these 
fruitless  disputes  with  the  State  authorities  and  with 
Congress. 

It  was  determined  during  the  summer  to  capture  a 
block-house  behind  Bergen  Heights  which  had  been 
made  a  place  of  deposit  by  the  armed  refugees  of  stolen 
horses  and  other  property  the  spoils  of  the  neighbor- 
hood. Wayne,  with  the  First  and  Second  Pennsyl- 
vania Brigades  and  four  pieces  of  artillery,  was  sent 
to  attack  it. 


ARNOLD'S   TREASON.  219 

The  following  account  of  this  expedition  is  given  in 
his  letter  to  President  Reed : 

Totoway  26th  July  1780 
Dear  Sir, — You  have  undoubtedly  heard  of  our  tour  to  Bergen — 
but  it  is  a  duty  which  I  owe  to  you,  the  troops  I  Commanded  &  to 
myself,  to  make  you  acquainted  with  the  Objects  of  that  expedition 
— least  envy,  Malice,  or  the  tongue  of  Slander,  should  attempt  to 
misrepresent  that  affair —  One  was  to  take  all  the  stock  out  of  Bergen 
Neck,  to  prevent  the  Enemy  from  receiving  constant  supplies  from 
the  Inhabitants  out  of  that  Quarter — and  in  Case  of  a  siege  to  secure 
to  our  own  use  those  Cattle  that  they  would  Inevitably  carry  into 
New  York.  Another  was  the  destruction  of  a  post  near  Bulls  ferry 
— consisting  of  a  Block  House  surrounded  by  a  strong  stockade  and 
Abbattis  Garrisoned  by  the  Refugees  &  a  wretched  banditti  of  Rob- 
bers horse  thieves  &c — 

But  the  Grand  Object  was  to  draw  the  Army  which  S'r  Henry 
Clinton  brought  from  Charlestown  into  an  Action  in  ye  Defiles  of 
the  Mountain  in  the  Vicinity  of  Fort  Lee,  where  we  expected  them 
to  Land  in  order  to  succour  the  Refugee  post,  or  to  endeavour  to 
cut  off  our  retreat  to  the  Liberty  pole  &  New  Bridge  ;  the  apparent 
object  to  them  was  great,  and  the  lure  had  like  to  take  the  wished 
effect — three  thousand  men  Consisting  of  the  flower  of  the  British 
Army  were  embarked  from  Phillips — and  stood  down  the  river 
hovering  off  the  land'g  near  fort  Lee — where  the  6th  &  7th  Penns'a 
Regiments  lay  concealed  with  directions  to  let  them  land  unmolested 
(giving  me  Intelligence  of  the  attempt)  &  then  to  meet  them  in  the 
Gorge  of  the  Defile  and  with  the  point  of  the  Bayonet  to  dispute 
the  pass  at  every  expense  of  Blood,  until  the  arrival  of  the  first  & 
second  Penns'a  Brigades  when  we  should  put  them  between  three 
such  fires  as  no  human  fortitude  could  withstand — and  I  may  now 
with  safety  mention,  that  it  was  also  designed  to  divert  their  atten- 
tion from  a  meditated  attempt  upon  Rhode  Island,  by  a  Combined 
attack  by  Land  and  Water  on  the  French  fleet  &  Army  in  that 
Place ;  this  has  had  the  effect,  by  retarding  them  four  days  after 
they  had  actually  embarked  upwards  of  six  thousand  men  for  that 
purpose  it  will  therefore  be  too  late  to  attempt  any  thing  at  this 
period  as  the  French  will  be  prepared  against  it — 


220  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

Inclosed  is  the  orders  of  the  20th  &  23d,  to  which  &  to  the 
General's  Letter  to  Congress  I  must  refer  you  for  the  particulars ;  I 
always  had  the  highest  Opinion  of  the  Troop  but  my  most  sanguine 
wishes — fell  far  short  of  the  real  fortitude  &  bravery,  which  per- 
vades the  whole,  even  the  New  Recruits — 

I  have  it  in  Command  from  his  Excellency  to  Inform  you,  that 
the  Uniforms  are  all  blue  faced  with  white  he  therefore  wishes  if 
possible  to  have  as  much  red  or  scarlet,  sent  Immediately  on  as  will 
face  our  soldiers  Coats — otherwise  the  officers  &  men  will  appear  of 
different  Corps — (the  facings  of  the  officers  scarlet,  and  the  soldiers 
white) — the  other  States  will  be  in  their  proper  uniforms  it  being 
that  fixed  for  the  Eastern  States,  and  with  a  little  clay  may  be  made 
to  appear  as  buff,  which  is  the  facings  of  New  York  &  Jersey  States 
so  that  ours  will  be  the  only  officers  whose  uniforms  will  differ  from 
their  soldiers — had  we  the  Cloth  and  Thread,  we  could  in  four  days 
alter  the  facings  for  the  whole  line — it  is  the  General's  Intention 
to  Clothe  them  all  new  before  they  meet  the  troops  of  France — In- 
terim believe  me  with  singular  Esteem 

Your  most  Ob't — 
Humb'e  Servant 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

His  Excellency 
Joseph  Reed  Esq'r. 

President  Reed  to  General  Wayne. 

Philad — Aug.  4 — 1780 

Dear  Sir, — I  duly  received  &  thank  you  for  your  favour  of  the 
26th  July  inclosing  your  Orders  on  the  late  Excursion  to  Bergens — 
They  have  been  spoken  of  here  much  to  your  Honour  &  with  the 
gallant  Behaviour  of  the  Men  shew  that  tho  we  did  not  meet  with 
entire  success  we  deserved  it — 

Neither  the  Object  of  the  Expedition,  nor  the  Conduct  of  it  was 
understood  fully  here  at  first  &  as  often  happens  on  such  Occasions 
were  misrepresented  but  a  few  Days  &  better  Information  soon  set 
that  Matter  right — if  any  Doubts  had  remained  the  General's  Letter 
wiped  them  off  tho  in  some  Respects  it  tended  to  make  the  Affair 
of  the  Block  House  a  more  important  Business  than  it  really  was — 
As  to  the  Whispers  of  Envy  &  Malevolence  &  Slander,  you  must, 


ARNOLD'S   TREASON.  221 

my  dear  Sir,  submit  in  common  with  your  Fellow  Men  to  a  share 
of  them,  as  the  Tax  which  merit  &  Distinction  must  pay —  The 
World  would  be  too  estimable  if  every  Action  was  judged  upon  the 
Principles  of  Candor  &  its  due  Worth  assigned  it  unalloyed  by 
jealousy  &  Uncharitableness — 

In  one  Respect  military  Merit  is  less  subject  to  it  than  any  other 
— as  it  has  Witnesses  &  Companions  &  the  Benefits  arising  to  Man- 
kind from  a  conspicuous  Display  of  it  are  such  that  the  World  is 
ready  to  be  its  Friend  for  its  own  Interest.  Should  you  be  called 
as  probably  you  may  to  any  distinguished  Rank  of  Civil  Life  you 
will  find  the  Acts  of  busy  wicked  men  more  successful,  &  not  so 
easily  Detected  or  parried. — Scarce  a  Week  elapses  but  some  wicked 
Falsehood  takes  Wing  with  Respect  to  us,  flutters  about  and  dies — 
when  a  new  one  more  palatable  &  adapted  to  the  State  of  the  Day 
arises  which  in  its  Turn  gives  way  to  a  fresher.  For  a  Time  I  felt 
myself  hurt  &  spent  Time  &  Labour  to  counteract  them  but  I  have 
long  since  learned  that  the  best  shield  is  Integrity  &  truest  Remedy 
Patience.  I  am  informed  that  there  has  been  much  Industry  used 
this  Spring  &  Summer  in  Camp  on  this  Score  &  that  it  is  very 
frequent  at  this  Time —  So  much  Pains  taken  to  lessen  me  in  the 
Opinion  of  Mankind  while  I  am  pursuing  diligently  the  Interests  of 
my  Country  with  a  single  disinterested  View  to  its  success  in  this 
great  Cause,  fully  convinces  me  that  there  are  some  Men  who  have 
different  Intentions  &  who  fear  honest  Men  in  publick  Stations — 
I  have  at  different  Periods  had  my  Passions  work'd  upon,  my  In- 
terest assailed,  splendid  Prospects  held  forth  to  engage  me  in  the 
Views  of  Party  &  I  never  experienced  the  full  Weight  of  Enmity 
till  I  had  fully  declined  every  Overture  of  this  Nature  in  such  a 
Manner  as  left  no  Hope  of  Success — 

However  I  trust  there  is  Virtue  &  Discernment  in  the  World 
sufficient  to  support  a  Man  in  doing  his  duty  &  that  I  have  some 
Friends  who  will  judge  upon  Facts  not  upon  Suggestions  especially 
when  they  come  thro  so  corrupt  a  Channel. 

Farmer  has  Directions  to  purchase  the  red  Cloth  for  the  Facings 
if  to  be  had  in  Town  &  they  will  be  forwarded  as  soon  as  possible 
— Lyttle  has  set  out  with  a  supply  of  stores  &  a  good  Stock  of  Shirts 
&  Overalls — 2000  of  each  which  with  what  gets  to  you  in  other 
Directions  will  I  hope  prove  a  comfortable  supply — 


222  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

Adieu — my  best  wishes  attend  you  &  I  beg  you  to  believe  me 
very  much 

Your  sincere  Friend  &  Obed. 
Hble  Serv't 

Jos.  Reed — 

The  enemy  asserted  that  the  Americans  had  been  re- 
pulsed from  the  block-house  by  a  small  garrison  com- 
posed of  Tory  refugees  only,  and  in  some  scurrilous 
verses  called  "The  Cow-Chase,"  which  were  widely 
distributed,  written  by  the  unfortunate  Major  Andre  a 
short  time  before  his  capture  and  execution,  the  exploits 
of  Wayne  and  the  other  American  officers  are  ridiculed 
with  a  kind  of  pitying  contempt  which  is  very  note- 
worthy. Wayne,  whose  activity  as  a  successful  forager 
in  New  Jersey  in  the  winter  of  1778  the  enemy  could 
never  forget,  and  his  officers,  were  lampooned  in  a  way 
which  betokened  the  arrogance  of  the  British  in  treating 
their  antagonists  as  men  of  inferior  social  condition. 

"  The  Cow-Chase"  closes  with  this  significant  verse, 
— significant  indeed,  when  we  recall  the  sad  fate  of  the 
author : 

"  And  now  I've  closed  my  epic  strain, 
I  tremble  as  I  show  it, 
Lest  this  same  warrior-drover,  Wayne, 
Should  ever  catch  the  poet." 

The  English  government  thought  the  defence  of  the 
block-house  so  noteworthy  that  the  king  sent  his  per- 
sonal thanks  to  the  seventy  refugees  who  composed 
that  garrison.  The  enemy,  according  to  Wayne,  did 
not  discern  the  real  object  of  the  attack,  and  he  ex- 
plained the  mystery  in  the  letter  to  President  Reed 
which  we  have  just  given. 


ARNOLD'S   TREASON.  223 

General  Wayne  during  the  whole  summer  was  un- 
tiring in  preparing  plans  for  engaging  the  enemy  to 
advantage.  He  was  not  disheartened  by  the  sea  of 
troubles  which  raged  around  him,  but  rather  stimulated 
to  adopt  new  methods  of  improving  the  military  situa- 
tion. On  the  10th  of  July  he  proposes  a  scheme  by 
which  the  British  army  at  New  York  might  be  taken 
by  surprise,  and  shortly  afterwards  he  writes  to  Presi- 
dent Reed  one  of  the  wisest,  most  temperate,  and  at 
the  same  time  most  determined  letters  in  the  whole 
correspondence,  urging  the  necessity  of  renewed  efforts 
on  the  part  of  Pennsylvania  to  carry  on  the  conflict. 
It  seemed  as  if  the  greater  the  danger  the  greater  his 
resources,  and  that  he  was  at  his  best  when  the  fullest 
demand  was  made  on  his  courage  and  energy. 

General  Wayne  to  General  Washington. 

Camp  at  Totoway  10th  July  1780. 

Sir,— It  was  but  the  evening  before  the  last  that  I  had  the  honor 
of  first  seeing  the  General  state  of  affairs  your  Excellency  was 
pleased  to  lay  before  the  Council  of  War  on  the  6th  ultimo — which 
I  have  given  as  mature  a  consideration  as  time  &  Circumstances 
would  admit  of. 

I  find  by  a  comparative  view  of  our  present  force  with  that  of  the 
Enemy,  after  making  proper  allowances,  for  the  change  of  affairs, 
by  the  reduction  of  Charlestown,  &  the  reinforcements  already- 
arrived  at  New  York  under  Sir  Harry  Clinton  that  they  have  a  de- 
cided majority  in  their  favor,  the  force  of  the  enemy  being  nearly 
11,000  effective  rank  &  file  regular  troops,  &  about  five  thousand 
Militia  refugees  &  etc  etc  in  the  whole  equal  to  16,000  Effectives 
exclusive  of  Marines  &  seamen. 

The  present  strength  of  your  army  taking  in  the  Garrison  of  West 
Point  is  not  more  than  7,000  rank  &  file  being  reduced  (by  killed 
&  wounded,  expiration  of  Inlistments,  desertion,  &  other  Casualties 
incident  to  all  armies)  at  least  1000  men  since  your  last  estimate — 


224  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

so  that  Sir  Harry  Clinton  has.  at  this  period  in  New  York  &  its 
vicinity  a  Land  force  more  than  Double  your  Numbers. 

In  this  estimate  I  have  not  taken  in  any  of  the  recruits  or  Drafts 
that  are  expected  from  the  several  States — but  from  the  best  Intelli- 
gence that  I  have  been  able  to  collect  the  number  that  may  be  ex- 
pected under  that  description  as  a  reinforcement  to  this  Army,  will 
not  exceed  7,000  men. 

I  ground  this  Calculation  on  the  following  proportion  viz. 

New  Hampshire 500 

Massachusetts .  2500 

Rhode  Island 300 

Connecticut 1500 

New  York 600 

New  Jersey 600 

Penns'a 600 

Delaware 200 

A  very  great  part  of  which  will  be  extremely  raw  troops,  &  arrive 
too  late  to  afford  an  opportunity  to  reduce  them  to  proper  Discipline 
before  they  may  be  called  to  action —  To  counterbalance  this  de- 
fect— the  tories  refugees  &  Militia  with  the  Enemy  will  be  nearly  on 
a  footing  in  that  respect — so  that  our  numbers  will  then  stand  as 
14,000  to  16,000  which  leave  a  balance  in  their  favor  of  2,000  men 
at  least. 

But  the  assurances  that  his  most  Christian  Majesty  and  the  Court 
of  France  have  given  of  their  Generous  Intention  of  sending  a  re- 
spectable Land  &  Naval  force  to  act  in  conjunction  with  your  Army 
and  entirely  under  the  Influence  of  American  councils,  opens  the 
most  flattering  prospect — which  by  a  proper  exertion  of  the  States 
may  be  productive  of  a  Glorious  Campaign. 

To  what  point  we  ought  to  direct  our  Operations,  will  require 
some  reflection, — there  are  three  Capital  Objects  that  present  them- 
selves, i.  e.  Canada,  New  York,  &  Charlestown. 

Admit  Canada  to  be  the  first,  we  are  then  to  consider,  what  force 
will  be  necessary  for  us  to  furnish  in  addition  to  the  French  fleet  & 
army  admitting  the  Navy  to  consist  of  Eight  sail  of  the  Line  with 
a  few  frigates,  &  the  Land  force  of  Seven  thousand  effective  rank  & 
file  completely  provided  with  all  the  apparatus  for  such  an  Army. — 


ARNOLD'S   TREASON.  225 

This  force  is  not  adequate  to  the  Reduction  of  Quebec  and  its  de- 
pendencies without  the  addition  of  at  least  three  or  four  thousand 
men  from  this  army — &  those  regular  standing  troops — who  if  for- 
tunate would  also  be  necessary  to  remain  in  Garrison  there  during 
the  Winter  (which  could  not  be  expected  from  the  drafts,  their  time 
of  service  terminating  in  January) — these  troops  must  march  by  the 
Cohoes  &  enter  Canada  near  the  confluence  of  the  Sore/  with  the  St 
Lawrence—  The  Difficulty  of  transporting  the  Cannon  provision  & 
baggage  is  too  Obvious  to  dwell  much  upon,  for  the  Enemy  pos- 
sessing the  Lake  Champlain  must  reduce  us  to  land  carriage  for  the 
chief  part  of  our  supplies,  unless  the  State  of  our  Magazines  will 
admit  of  sending  a  sufficient  supply  round  by  the  French  fleet — we 
are  not  to  expect  the  Essential  article  of  Provision  in  Canada, — for 
altho'  they  raise  a  Considerable  quantity  of  summer  wheat — there 
are  not  a  sufficiency  of  Mills  in  that  Country  to  manufacture  it  into 
flour  nor  have  they  more  Cattle  than  what  are  absolutely  necessary  for 
their  own  consumption, — these  are  facts  not  founded  upon  tradition 
or  Opinion  of  others — but  from  my  own  knowledge  &  Observation. 

I  beg  leave  also  to  premise,  that  we  have  little  to  expect  from  the 
Defection  of  the  Canadians — those  people  will  be  very  cautious  how 
they  irritate  a  second  time  the  British,  whilst  matters  remain  the 
least  doubtful — especially  whilst  a  powerful  army  is  in  the  heart 
of  Our  own  Country,  and  the  probability  of  the  arrival  of  a  Supe- 
rior fleet  from  Britain  to  that  of  France  in  the  vicinity  of  Quebec — 
during  a  siege  that  may  be  procrastinated  longer  than  we  expect. 

The  Intervention  of  a  fleet  is  also  a  very  serious  matter  to  us —  I 
well  recollect  the  difficulty  we  experienced  in  effecting  a  retreat  from 
that  Country  in  1776  when  we  had  the  full  possession  of  the  Lakes ; 
&  have  we  nothing  to  apprehend  from  the  exertions  of  Sir  Harry 
Clinton? — will  he  remain  an  Idle  spectator  at  the  head  of  16,000 
men,  whilst  we  are  Operating  in  a  distant  Country? — will  he  not 
rather  push  his  fortune  against  a  Debilitated  army,  &  endeavor  to 
destroy  our  Magazines,  &  desolate  the  Country, — and  may  he  not 
attempt  this  with  too  great  a  probability  of  Success? 

I  am  therefore  of  Opinion  that  Canada  is  not  the  most  Eligible 
object ; — some  of  these  reasons,  especially  the  last,  will  operate  in 
full  force  against  an  attempt  for  the  recovery  of  Charlestown,  until 
a  more  favorable  opening  presents  itself. 

16 


226  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

The  greatest  and  most  capital  Object  is  New  York,  an  Object 
worthy  the  utmost  exertions  of  America,  &  which  from  its  central 
position  affords  an  Opportunity  of  drawing  our  force  to  a  point  with 
the  greatest  facility,  &  without  those  risks  &  Disagreeable  conse- 
quences attendant  upon  a  misfortune  either  in  Canada  or  Charles 
Town  ; — Could  the  eyes  of  this  country  be  once  opened  to  its  true 
Interest — could  the  States  be  roused  from  the  unworthy  torpidity 
into  which  they  have  sunk — the  Reduction  of  the  Garrison  of  New 
York  &  its  dependencies  would  not  be  attended  with  much  diffi- 
culty— but  from  present  appearances  I  fear  our  mode  of  Operation 
will  be  very  circumscribed — as  it  will  in  a  great  degree  be  governed 
by  the  Numbers  we  have  in  the  field. 

Supposing  the  Drafts  &  Recruits  to  have  come,  &  the  French 
troops  formed  a  junction  with  the  other  part  of  your  Army — we  may 
then  lay  our  whole  force  at  about  20,000  Rank  &  file — this  number 
tho'  sufficient  to  prevent  an  Incursion — will  not  be  equal  to  an  Inves- 
titure. We  therefore  can't  do  with  less  than  12,000  good  Militia  in 
addition,  &  those  engaged  for  a  Certain  term — not  subject  to  a  fluc- 
tuation which  has  too  often, — &  may  again  commit  us  at  a  very  criti- 
cal period, — and  even  this  force  will  not  be  adequate  to  a  Complete 
Investiture  for  unless  we  had  two  armies — each  superior  to  the  whole 
of  our  adversaries, — the  Enemy  by  Concentering  their  force  might 
find  an  opening  to  strike  us  in  a  Divided  state  which  they  dare  not 
attempt  if  united. 

I  have  not  such  a  knowledge  of  the  Country  immediately  in  the 
Vicinity  of  New  York  as  to  justify  me  in  giving  a  Decided  Opinion 
as  to  the  most  proper  &  exact  point  of  attack — that  will  require  a 
minute  &  close  Inspection, — but  from  the  General  knowledge  I  have 
of  Staten  &  Long  Islands — &  the  probable  strength  we  may  have  at 
the  Commencement  of  our  Operations;  I  don't  think  either  very 
Eligible  altho'  they  may  have  many  real  as  well  as  apparent  advan- 
tages— which  the  Intervention  of  a  fleet  from  Europe  might  render 
very  hazardous  in  the  end. 

I  therefore  am  of  Opinion  (grounded  upon  prudential  as  well  as 
Military  principles)  that  we  ought  to  begin  our  Operations  against 
New  York  Island  by  the  way  of  [  ]  and  after  Establishing 

ourselves  on  that  Island  &  securing  a  safe  retreat  in  case  of  Acci- 
dent— we  may  as  Circumstances  present  effect  a  lodgment  on  Long 


ARNOLD'S   TREASON.  227 


Island  &  take  such  position  as  will  facilitate  the  reduction  of  the 
Garrison,  by  a  combined  attack  from  different  points  after  securing 
a  proper  chain  of  communication. 

I  have  given  this  Opinion  on  the  presumption  that  our  whole  force 
will  not  exceed  30,000  or  32,000  Effectives, — should  we  fortunately 
reach  as  high  as  40,000  I  would  advise  two  approaches  to  commence 
at  the  same  time,  i.  e.  by  the  way  of  [  ]  &  Staten  Island. 

I  have  only  to  add  that  whatever  may  be  your  decision — you  may 
rest  assured  of  the  best  services  of  your  Excellency's 

Most  Ob't  &  Very  Humb'l  Serv't 
Anth'y  Wayne. 
His  Excellency 

General  Washington. 

General  Wayne  to  President  Reed. 

Camp  at  Steenrapia 
17  Sep  1780 

Sir, — At  the  commencement  of  this  campaign  we  had  the  most 
flattering  expectations  from  the  promised  succors  of  his  most  Chris- 
tian Majesty  as  well  as  from  the  exertions  of  these  States,  but  the 
intervention  of  a  superior  fleet  to  that  of  our  Allies  in  these  seas,  the 
blockade  of  Brest  in  which  port  the  second  division  intended  for 
America  is  shut  up,  and  the  tedious  delay,  and  at  length  total  pre- 
vention of  operations  in  the  West  Indies,  together  with  the  recent 
military  check  we  have  experienced  in  South  Carolina,  and  the 
deficiency  of  promised  aid  &  supplies  in  the  United  States  have 
materially  altered  the  complexion  of  affairs. 

In  this  situation  I  have  been  called  upon  to  give  my  opinion  in 
writing  of  what  I  think  the  most  advisable  mode  of  conduct  or 
feasible  point  of  operation —  The  actual  arrival  of  Sir  George 
Rodney  with  10  sail  of  the  line  at  Sandy  Hook  will  when  joined  by 
Adm'l  Arbuthnot  be  Equal  to  between  20  &  26  sail,  so  that  the 
forces  will  be  nearly  on  an  equality.  Hence  we  have  little  reason 
to  expect  any  thing  capital  taking  place — 

Could  any  period  be  fixed  for  the  arrival  of  the  second  division 
from  Brest  so  as  to  place  our  allies  in  the  sovereignty  of  the  seas, 
I  should  not  be  at  a  loss —  But  as  this  is  only  problematical,  or 
at  most  eventual,  I  must  acknowledge  that  I  see  but  a  choice  of 


228  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

difficulties  left  to  determine  upon,  among  others  that  of  experiencing 
every  extreme  of  distress  at  this  stage  of  the  campaign  for  the  want 
of  provisions  is  of  the  most  alarming  nature,  and  would  of  itself 
be  sufficient  to  defeat  the  best  plan  in  the  power  of  a  General  to 
design. 

When  I  look  to  a  period  fast  approaching  I  discern  the  most 
gloomy  prospect,  distressing  objects  presenting  themselves — and 
when  I  consider  that  the  mass  of  the  people  who  now  compose  this 
Army  will  dissolve  by  the  first  of  January,  except  a  little  corps 
enlisted  for  the  war,  that  they  are  badly  paid  and  worse  fed,  I  dread 
the  consequence,  for  these  melancholy  facts  may  have  a  fatal  influ- 
ence upon  their  minds  when  opposed  to  a  well-appointed,  puissant 
and  desolating  Army —  Should  Sir  H.  Clinton  profit  by  former  error, 
and  commence  the  General,  and  pour  like  a  Deluge  upon  a  naked 
country  and  once  more  possess  your  capital,  I  have  but  too  much 
ground  to  dread  that  by  an  introduction  of  civil  gov't  he  would 
find  many,  very  many  adherents  and  perhaps  a  greater  number  of 
converts  than  we  at  present  suspect. 

I  know  that  you  are  not  to  learn  that  the  fidelity  of  some  of  the 
Southern  States  is  much  shaken,  and  that  the  great  proportion  of  the 
landed  interest  in  your  State  would  have  little  objection  to  submit 
to  the  former  gov't  and  I  can  from  my  own  knowledge  (but  not 
without  pain)  assure  you  that  the  Farmers  in  this  State  (New  York) 
appear  to  wish  for  peace  on  any  terms  owing  to  the  mode  in  which 
we  have  been  necessitated  to  ration  our  troops  and  forage  our  horses, 
which  is  truly  distressing  to  them,  and  affords  but  a  very  partial 
relief  to  us — yet  little  as  it  is — it  has  hitherto  prevented  the  disso- 
lution of  this  Army — 

I  know  that  a  true  picture  of  our  situation  must  be  very  distress- 
ing to  the  mind  and  hurtful  to  the  eye  of  a  gentleman  who  from 
principle,  as  well  as  from  his  station  must  be  deeply  interested  in 
the  fate  of  America.  Yet  it  is  a  duty  which  as  a  Citizen  and  as  a 
Soldier  I  owe  to  you,  to  myself,  &  to  my  country  to  show  it  in  its 
true  colors,  and  also  to  assure  you  that  I  am  not  influenced  by  any 
apprehensions  for  my  own  liberty  or  Safety.  I  have  fully  &  deliber- 
ately considered  every  possible  vicissitude  of  fortune.  I  know  that 
it  is  not  in  the  power  of  Britain  to  subjugate  a  mind  determined  to 
be  free.    Whilst  I  am  master  of  my  own  sword,  I  am  governor  of  my 


ARNOLD'S   TREASON.  229 

own  fate.  I  therefore  only  fear  (but  greatly  fear)  for  that  of  my 
country,  and  would  wish  to  warn  her  of  her  danger  and  point  out 
the  only  mode  that  can  possibly  rescue  her  from  impending  ruin. 

We  have  it  yet  in  our  power  to  remedy  &  correct  former  mistakes 
and  rise  superior  to  every  difficulty  and  danger.  This  can  only  be 
done  by  a  foreign  loan,  and  by  a  completion  of  our  regiments. 
The  Eastern  States  seem  fully  convinced  of  their  error,  and  from 
the  best  intelligence  will  exert  every  power  to  complete  their  quotas 
of  troops  for  the  war. 

Pennsylvania  in  this  will  have  greatly  the  advantage.  The  levies 
now  in  camp  are  enlisting  upon  trust.  While  this  spirit  is  up,  I 
wish  we  were  provided  with  some  hard  cash.  This  is  the  time  to 
take  them.  If  we  wait  much  longer  the  termination  of  their  service 
will  be  so  near,  that  they  will  begin  to  watch  for  the  day  when 
nothing  will  induce  them  to  enlist.  Add  to  this  that  these  men  are 
now  on  the  spot,  that  there  is  no  danger  of  being  imposed  upon  by 
Deserters,  that  every  man  we  enlist  we  are  sure  of,  and  that  they 
have  acquired  some  discipline  and  adroitness  in  exercise  and  ma- 
noeuvring, by  the  close  attention  and  indefatigable  industry  of  our 
officers,  while  they  still  continue  to  improve  with  unwearied  zeal. 

Very  Sincerely 
Ant'y  Wayne. 

While  beset  with  these  anxieties  and  embarrassments 
Wayne  encountered  a  new  difficulty,  or  rather  a  revival 
of  an  old  one.  The  year  before,  it  will  be  remembered, 
the  officers  of  the  line  had  been  much  dissatisfied  at  the 
appointment  made  by  Congress  of  Major  Macpherson 
as  a  brevet  major.  In  some  way,  not  now  easily  to  be 
explained,  the  difficulty  was  then  patched  up,  but  in 
August,  1780,  when  a  new  corps  of  light  infantry  was 
to  be  organized,  Major  Macpherson  was  transferred 
to  it  according  to  his  brevet  rank.  This  gave  rise  to 
serious  trouble  among  the  officers  of  the  line,  and  they 
all  threatened  to  resign  their  commissions  if  the  ap- 
pointment of  Major  Macpherson  were  insisted  upon. 


23o  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

We  give  the  correspondence  on  this  subject  between 
Generals  Wayne  and  Irvine  with  General  Washington, 
which  is  on  many  accounts  interesting.  The  design  of 
forming  a  new  Light  Infantry  Corps  in  the  summer 
of  1780  was  abandoned,  and  the  necessity  of  settling 
this  thorny  question  was  thus  evaded. 

Generals  Wayne  and  Irvine  to  General  Washington, 

Tappan,  10th  August  1780. 

Sir, — It  was  not  until  some  time  after  your  Excellency  was  made 
acquainted  with  the  very  great  dissatisfaction  which  the  Majors  of 
the  Penns'a  line  experienced  on  the  appointment  of  Major  Macpher- 
son  to  a  Command  in  the  Light  Corps  drawn  from  this  state, — that 
we  were  informed  of  the  address  which  they  presented  to  you; — the 
moment  we  discovered  the  effect  that  appointment  had  upon  them, 
every  means  in  our  power  was  used  to  Conciliate  matters, — &  we 
had  a  flattering  prospect  from  the  nice  feelings  of  Major  Macpher- 
son,  that  an  opening  would  be  made  (by  a  voluntary  resignation)  for 
one  of  those  Gentlemen  to  supply  his  place  in  the  Light  Corps — 
without  hurting  the  feelings  of  your  Excellency,  or  entering  into 
an  Investigation  of  the  propriety  or  right  of  Brevets  taking  a  per- 
manent Command  in  a.  full  corps — drawn  from  one  State  during  a 
Campaign. — Upon  this  Ground  we  prevailed  upon  the  Majors  to 
hold  their  Commissions  for  a  few  days,  until  the  Army  was  in  a 
more  fixed  state,  &  to  give  time  for  cool  reason  to  govern — hoping 
something  might  take  place  in  the  Interim  that  would  restore  har- 
mony &  Content, — but  the  Solemn  manner  in  which  we  were  called 
upon  yesterday  morning  by  the  Colonels  &  Lieu't  Colonels  on  this 
Occasion  convinced  us  that  the  Dissolution  of  the  Line  would  but 
too  probably  take  place  unless  the  cause  could  be  removed — and 
being  requested  by  them  to  make  a  true  representation  to  your  Ex- 
cellency of  their  feelings  &  Determination, — we  were  Induced  to 
wait  on  you  at  12  O' Clock — yesterday,  &  to  communicate  Viva 
Voce — what  we  had  in  charge  from  them. 

We  have  at  your  Excellency's  request  called  upon  those  Officers  to 
commit  their  Objections  to  writing — this  they  decline,  saying  that 
the  Majors  have  already  stated  them  in  their  address  to  you,  &  that 


ARNOLD'S   TREASON.  231 

they  are  Influenced  by  the  same  feelings   and  will  abide  the  same 
fate  as  their  Majors. 

We  shall  not  attempt  to  advocate  the  matter,  or  to  give  an  Opin- 
ion on  the  usage  or  custom  of  brevet  appointments — and  altho'  an 
office  extremely  distressing  to  us — yet  it  is  a  duty  which  we  owe  to 
your  Excellency — to  our  Country — &  to  ourselves — to  declare ',  that 
unless  some  happy  event  Immediately  Intervenes — we  do  not  believe 
it  to  be  in  our  power  to  prevent  the  Resignation  of  a  Corps  of  Offi- 
cers, who  have  upon  every  Occasion  produced  a  Conviction,  that 
they  are  second  to  none  in  Esteem  &  attachment  to  your  Excellency, 
— fidelity  to  the  States, — or  prowess  in  the  field. 

Interim  we  have  the  Honor  to  be  with  every  Sentiment  of  re- 
spect 

Your  Excellency's 

most  Ob't  &  very 

Humb  Servt's 

Ant'y  Wayne 
Wm  Irvine 
(Copy) 
His  Excellency 

Gen'l  Washington. 

Generals  Wayne  and  Irvine  to  General  Washington. 

Tappan  nth  Aug't  1780  12  O'Clock. 
Sir, — We  have  this  moment  received  your  Excellency's  favour  of 
this  day  &  shall  Immediately  communicate  it  to  the  Field  officers  of 
the  line —     Could  our  most  sanguine  wishes  prevail — an  Immediate 
termination  would  be  put  to  this  alarming  affair — 

But  we  cannot  yet  flatter  ourselves  of  any  happy  effects  from  the 
utmost  of  our  exertion — which  rest  assured  will  not  be  wanting  on 
this  occasion 

We  have  the  honor  to  be  with  singular  Esteem 

Your  Excellency's 
Most  Obed't 

Humble  Serv'ts 
Anthony  Wayne. 
Wm  Irvine. 
(A  Copy) 


232  MAJOR-GENERAL   WAYNE. 


Generals  Wayne  and  Irvine  to  the  Field  Officers  of  the  Pennsylvania 

Line. 

Tappan  i  2th  August  1780 
6  o'Clock  p.m. 
Gentlemen, — Let  us  entreat  you  by  the  sacred  ties  of  Honor, 
friendship,  &  Patriotism — well  to  Consider  the  measure  recom- 
mended by  us  last  evening — &  however  your  feelings  may  be 
wounded — reflect  that  ages  yet  to  come  may  owe  their  happiness,  or 
misery,  to  the  Decision  of  this  hour. — Your  own  fate  is  so  Involved 
with  that  of  your  Country's,  that  the  same  cause  which  hurts  the 
one,  will  mortally  wound  the  other. 

For  God's  sake,  be  yourselves — and  as  a  band  of  Brothers — rise 
superior  to  every  Injury — whether  real  or  Imaginary — at  least  for 
this  Campaign,  which  probably  will  produce  a  Conviction  to  the 
World — that  America  owes  her  freedom  to  the  temporary  sacrifice 
you  now  make. 

You  will  also  reflect  that  this  is  a  favor  solicited  by  men  who 
would  bleed  to  Death,  drop  by  drop,  to  defend  your  honor — as  well 
as  that  of  your  very  Affectionate 

Hum'l  Serv'fs 

Ant'y  Wayne 
Wm  Irvine. 
N.  B.    at  all  events  do  not  come  to  a  final  decision  (should  it  be 
contrary  to  this  requisition)  before  7  o' Clock  in  the  morning  when 
we  may  have  something  to  Offer  that  may  meet  your  Approbation. 

The  Field  Officers 

OF  THE  PENNS'A  LlNE. 


Major  Macpherson  to  General  Wayne. 

12  August  1780 
Major  Macpherson  presents  his  Compliments  to  General  Wayne, 
&  informs  him,  he  has  considered  the  matter  he  mentioned  to  him 
relative  to  a  separate  Command — and  thinks  it  extremely  improper 
in  him  to  say  a  single  word  on  the  subject —  The  only  reason  that 
prevented  him  at  once  declaring  himself  in  this  manner  was  a  wish 
before  he  determined  to  consider  the  matter  maturely — tho'  the  same 
opinion  struck  him  at  the  time  the  matter  was  mentioned. 


ARNOLD'S   TREASON.  233 


With  respect  to  the  information  General  Wayne  received  from 
Col  Stuart — Major  Macpherson  requests  he  will  contradict  that 
matter  in  the  Division. — Colonel  Stuart — as  he  informs  Major  Mac- 
pherson only  said  it  was  his  opinion  that  if  General  St.  Clair  would 
request  Major  Macpherson  to  relinquish  his  right  to  the  Command 
on  the  Infantry  that  he  would  do  it. 

The  gloomy  campaign  of  1 780  was  made  still  gloomier 
at  its  close  by  the  memorable  treason  of  Arnold  in  Sep- 
tember of  that  year.  The  details  of  this  attempt  (which 
had  so  well-nigh  succeeded)  to  betray  the  garrison  at 
West  Point  and  its  dependencies  into  the  hands  of  the 
enemy  are  too  well  known  to  need  recapitulation 
here.  The  part  which  was  taken  by  General  Wayne 
and  the  Pennsylvania  line  in  defeating  this  treasonable 
scheme  is  not  so  well  known,  and  some  account  of  it 
should  be  given  in  any  true  story  of  its  commander's 
life.  His  division  was  then  stationed  near  Haverstraw, 
and  in  those  days  when  there  seemed  a  disposition  to 
suspect  the  loyalty  of  every  one,  and  when  even  Arnold 
could  prove  a  traitor,  it  is  satisfactory  to  find  that  im- 
plicit trust  was  placed  not  only  in  Wayne,  but  in  the 
men  who  commanded  his  regiments, — Chambers,  Wal- 
ter Stewart,  Craig,  W.  Butler,  Harmar,  R.  Butler,  with 
true  and  stanch  General  W.  Irvine  at  their  head.  On 
their  arrival  at  West  Point,  "  having  marched  over  the 
mountains  sixteen  miles  in  four  hours  without  losing 
a  man,"  they  were  placed  by  General  Washington  in 
charge  of  the  post,  he  being  well  assured  that  they 
would  prove  its  most  trustworthy  safeguard  amidst  the 
threatening  dangers  by  which  it  was  surrounded.  The 
choice  of  the  Pennsylvania  regiments  for  such  a  duty 
at  such  a  time  has  a  significance  which  was  very  apparent 


234  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

at  that  crisis,  but  which  has  been  singularly  overlooked 
by  historians. 

Major-General  St.  Clair,  in  command  of  the  Penn- 
sylvania line,  was  stationed  at  West  Point.  On  the 
i st  of  October  the  troops  under  his  command  were  the 
Pennsylvania  division  and  Meigs  and  Livingston's  Con- 
tinental regiments.  "  Unless  you  think  it  necessary  for 
the  immediate  security  of  the  post  to  draw  the  first 
Penn'a  (Wayne's)  brigade  nearer  West  Point,"  says  the 
order  of  Washington,  "I  should  wish  it  to  remain  some- 
where in  its  present  position  (guarding  the  Defile),  as  it 
may  then  at  the  same  time  serve  the  purpose  of  rein- 
forcing the  main  army  in  case  of  a  movement  against 
it.  But  on  the  first  appearance  of  the  enemy  coming  in 
force  up  the  River,  that  Brigade  should  have  previous 
orders  to  march  to  your  succor."  "  I  was  ordered  on 
here,"  says  General  Irvine,  "with  my  Brigade  (2dPenn'a) 
on  the  alarm  that  was  occasioned  by  Arnold's  villainous 
business.  I  made  a  rapid  march  and  found  the  place 
on  my  arrival  in  a  most  miserable  condition  in  every 
respect.  About  1800  militia  had  been  at  the  Post,  but 
were  chiefly  detached  on  various  pretences.  Those  who 
remained  had  not  a  single  place  assigned  them,  nor  had 
a  single  order  what  to  do.  I  have  not  heard  from 
Head  Quarters  to-day,  but  I  have  reason  to  believe  that 
Major  Andre  and  Smith  must  be  hung." 

General  Wayne  to  General  Washington. 

Smith's  White  House  27th  Sep'r  1780 
Dear  Sir,—  6  OClock  a.m. 

*  ******* 

Your  letter  of  yesterday  from  the  Robinson  house  came  to  hand 
between  7  &  8  OClock  in  the  Evening.     As  the  troops  were  much 


ARNOLD'S   TREASON.  235 

fatigued  for  want  of  Sieep — no  prospect  of  any  more  of  the  enemy 
up  the  river — &  being  in  possession  of  &  Commanding  the  pass  by 
Storm's,  &c  towards  West  Point,  with  a  road  in  our  rear  to  file  off 
our  Artillery  by  Haverstraw  forge  under  the  Mountain,  Gen'l  Irvine 
&  myself  thought  it  best  to  remain  in  this  position  until  morning — 
or  until  a  move  of  the  Enemy  should  take  place — in  the  latter  case 
to  make  a  rapid  move  for  West  Point,  sending  our  Artillery  &  bag- 
gage by  the  route  already  mentioned  as  soon  as  the  latter  should 
arrive. 

I  forgot  to  mention  to  your  Excellency  that  the  1st  &  2nd  Bri- 
gades marched  from  Tappan  at  a  moments  warning  leaving  our  tents 
standing,  Guards  &  Detachments  out,  &  pushed  with  rapidity  to 
Secure  this  pass — where  it  would  be  in  our  power  to  dispute  the 
Ground  inch  by  inch — or  to  proceed  to  West  Point  as  occasion 
might  require,  which  was  effected  in  as  little  time  as  ever  so  long  a 
march  was  performed  in. 

As  the  wind  at  present  is  strong  down  the  river — neither  Baggage 
or  Guard  yet  arrived  though  every  moment  expected — I  shall  take 
post  at  Williams's  with  the  first  Brigade  &  Artillery  of  the  2nd — 
Gen'l  Irvine  will  move  slowly  to  Storms  &  wait  your  further  Order 
with  regard  to  the  Baggage  Waggons  horses  &c 

The  Wind  is  too  high  for  the  boats  to  make  way  up  the  river  was 
the  baggage  even  arrived  The  troops  are  at  present  employed  in 
working  for  to  day  &  tomorrow  so  that  no  time  will  be  lost  until  I 
receive  your  further  orders 

I  am  Your  Excellency's  Most  Ob't  HI  St 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

[To  Gen'l  Washington.] 

General  Wayne  to  If.  A.  Sheel. 

Haverstraw  near  Stoney  Point 
2nd  Oct'r  1780 

Dear  Sheel, — I  am  confident  that  the  perfidy  of  Genl.  Arnold 
will  astonish  the  multitude — the  high  rank  he  bore — the  eclat  he  had 
Obtained  (whether  honestly  or  not)  Justified  the  world  in  giving  it 
him. 

But  there  were  a  few  Gentlemen  who  at  a  very  early  period  of 
this  War  became  acquainted  with  his  true  Character ! — when  you 


236  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

asked  my  Opinion  of  that  Officer  I  gave  it  freely — &  believe  you 
thought  it  rather  strongly  shaded — 

I  think  I  informed  you  that  I  had  the  most  despicable  Idea  of  him 
both  as  a  Gentleman  &  a  Soldier — &  that  he  had  produced  a  con- 
viction on  me  in  1776 — that  honor  &  true  Virtue  were  Strangers  to 
his  Soul,  and  however  Contradictory  it  might  appear — that  he  never 
possessed  either  fortitude  or  personal  bravery — he  was  naturally  a 
Coward,  and  never  went  in  the  way  of  Danger  but  when  Stimulated 
by  Liquor  even  to  Intoxication,  consequently  Incapacitated  from 
Conducting  any  Command  committed  to  his  charge 

I  shall  not  dwell  upon  his  Military  Character  or  the  measures  he 
had  adopted  for  the  Surrender  of  West  Point — that  being  already 
fully  Elucidated,  but  will  give  you  a  small  specimen  of  his  peculate 
talents — 

What  think  you  of  his  employing  Sutlers  to  retail  the  publick 
Liquors  for  his  private  Emolument,  &  furnishing  his  Quarters  with 
beds  &  other  furniture  by  paying  for  them  with  Pork,  Salt,  Flour, 
&c  drawn  from  the  Magazines — he  has  not  stopped  here — he  has  de- 
scended much  lower — &  defrauded  the  old  Veteran  Soldiers  who 
have  bled  for  their  Country  in  many  a  well  fought  field,  for  more 
than  five  Campaigns,  among  others  an  old  Serg't  of  mine  has  felt 
his  rapacity— by  the  Industry  of  this  man's  wife  they  had  accumu- 
lated something  handsome  to  support  them  in  their  advanced  age — 
which  coming  to  the  knowledge  of  this  cruel  spoiler — he  borrowed 
4,500  Dollars  from  the  poor  Credulous  Woman  &  left  her  in  the 
Lurch. — The  dirty — dirty  acts  which  he  has  been  capable  of  Com- 
mitting beggar  all  description — and  are  of  such  a  Nature  as  would 
cause  the  Jnfernals  to  blush — were  they  accused  with  the  Invention, 
or  execution  of  them — 

The  detached  &  Debilitated  state  of  the  Garrison  of  West  Point — 
Insured  success  to  the  assailants — the  Enemy  were  all  in  perfect 
readiness — for  the  Enterprize — &  the  discovery  of  the  treason — only 
prevented — an  Immediate  attempt  by  Open  force  to  carry  those 
works — which  perfidy  would  have  effected  the  fall  of,  by  a  slower  & 
less  sanguine  mode. — Our  army  was  out  of  protecting  distance — the 
troops  in  the  possession  of  the  Works  a  spiritless  Miserabile  Vulgus 
— in  whose  hands  the  fate  of  America  seemed  suspended — in  this 
Situation  His  Excellency — (in   Imitation   of    Caesar   &   his   tenth 


ARNOLD'S   TREASON.  237 

Legion) — called  for  his  Veterans — the  Summons  arrived  at  One 
OClock  in  the  morning — &  we  took  up  our  Line  of  March  at  2 — 
&  by  sun  rise  arrived  at  this  place  distant  from  our  former  Camp  16 
miles — the  whole  performed  in  four  hours  in  a  dark  night — without 
a  single  halt  or  a  man  left  behind —  When  our  approach  was 
announced  to  the  General  he  thought  it  fabulous — but  when  con- 
vinced of  the  reality — he  received  us  like  a  God — &  retiring  to  take 
a  short  repose — exclaimed — "All  is  safe,  &  I  again  am  happy" — 
May  he  long — very  long  Continue  so — 

The  protection  of  that  Important  place  is  committed  to  my  Con- 
duct until  a  proper  Garrison  arrives — I  shall  not  throw  myself  into 
the  Works — but  will  dispute  the  Approaches  inch  by  inch  and  at  the 
point  of  the  bayonet,  decide  the  fate  of  the  day  in  the  Gorge  of  the 
Defiles — at  every  expense  of  blood,  until  death  or  Victory  cries — 
"  hold" — "hold" —  It  is  not  in  our  power  to  Command  Success — 
but  it  is  in  our  power  to  produce  a  Conviction  to  the  world  that  we  de- 
serve it — &  I  trust  that  whatever  may  be  the  Issue, — my  Conduct 
will  never  require  the  palliation  of  a  friend,  or  memory  cause  a  blush 
to  shade  the  cheek  of  any  tender  acquaintance.  Apropo'  there  is  one 
to  whom  you'l  be  so  Oblig'g  as  to  present  my  kindest  wishes 

Adieu  my  Dear  Sir  &  believe  me 
Yours  Most  Sincerely 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

[To  Hugh  Sheel,  Esq.] 

Hugh  A.  Sheel  to  General  Wayne. 

Philadelphia  Oct.  22,  1780 
My  dear  General, — Dr.  Skinners  sudden  &  unexpected  depart- 
ure from  this  gives  me  scarcely  time  to  thank  you  for  your  obliging 
favor  which  was  delivered  to  me  by  Mr.  Litell.  It  made  me  very 
happy  to  find  that  our  worthy  and  illustrious  General  manifested  his 
confidence  in  you  and  the  Pennsylvania  Line  by  calling  on  you  on 
so  critical  an  occasion  as  the  infernal  treachery  of  Arnold  produced 
— the  extraordinary  march  you  made  invited  the  applause  of  all — 
but  not  the  surprise  of  any  who  knew  you — the  character  you 
gave  me  in  confidence  of  Arnold  several  months  ago,  made  a  strong 
impression  on  my  mind — it  has  been  verified  fully — his  villany 
&  machination  never  cou'd  have  been  carried  on,   but  thro'  the 


238  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

medium  of  his  Tory  acquaintances  in  this  place — &  this  points  out 
the  absolute  necessity  of  putting  an  end  to  every  kind  of  intercourse 
with  disaffected  &  suspicious  characters  Female  as  well  Male,  &  in 
the  fullest  manner  Justifies  the  resolution  entered  into  &  published 
by  you,  &  the  other  Gentlemen  of  the  Army  in  this  Town,  last 
Spring —  A  very  great  number  of  Citizens  have  adopted  the  same 
measure  &  have  associated  themselves  not  only  for  that  purpose, 
but  for  the  removal  of  obnoxious  characters  out  of  the  State — it  is 
opposed  by  some  Gentlemen  here — from  whom  you  w'd  not  expect 
opposition  to  so  necessary  a  measure.  We  have  been  alarmed  by 
an  acc't  of  a  new  piece  of  treachery  in  Virginia — a  Scotch  gen- 
tleman, Mr  David  Ross  of  Petersburg,  possessed  of  an  immense 
fortune,  is  now  in  prison — for  holding  a  correspondence  with  L'd 
Cornwallis,  the  Commission  of  Brigadier  Gen'l  was  granted  to  him 
&  found  in  his  possession,  &  his  dispatches  with  the  Bearer  were 
secured — in  them  were  Commissions  for  the  different  Officers  of  a 
Reg't  that  Ross  was  to  embody — &  w'ch  He  transmitted  to  L'd 
Cornwallis  to  sign — it  appears  that  on  the  arrival  of  a  force  ex- 
pected from  N :  York — He  was  to  arm  the  convention  Troops —  No 
other  particulars  have  yet  come  to  hand — but  from  the  number  who 
were  commission'd  it  is  likely  that  great  discoveries  will  be  made. 
As  soon  as  they  are  made  known  I  will  transmit  them  to  you — as  I 
request  you  may  any  thing  new  that  occurs  in  y'r  part  of  the  world. 
As  Dr.  Skinner  will  give  you  a  full  detail  of  City  news,  I  have  but 
to  beg  you  may  believe  me  to  be  with  sincere  respect  &  esteem 

My  D'r  Sir 

Y'r  much  Obliged 
&  most  Obed't  Serv't 

H.  A.  ShEEL.* 

Notwithstanding  the  devoted  loyalty  and  high  disci- 
pline which  distinguished  the  Pennsylvania  line  on  this 

1  Hugh  Sheel  was  a  native  of  Ireland,  and  a  physician.  He  prac- 
tised medicine  in  Philadelphia  towards  the  end  of  the  Revolution, 
and  in  1780  subscribed  five  thousand  pounds  to  establish  the  bank 
organized  to  supply  the  American  army  with  money  needed  for 
supplies.  He  removed  to  Kentucky,  where  he  was  subsequently 
drowned  in  attempting  to  cross  a  river. 


REVOLT  OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA   LINE.      239 

occasion,  and  which  led  it  to  undergo  any  privation 
in  order  to  defeat  the  treasonable  designs  of  Arnold, 
these  very  men  were  driven  a  few  months  later  into 
open  mutiny,  and,  desperate  in  their  sufferings,  threat- 
ened to  march  to  Philadelphia  and  coerce  Congress  to 
yield  to  their  claims  and  to  redress  their  grievances. 
How  is  this  strange  transformation  of  unshaken  fidelity 
to  a  mutinous  spirit  to  be  accounted  for  ? 

It  is  very  evident  that  a  growing  feeling  of  discon- 
tent, which  many  mistook  for  disaffection  to  the  cause, 
prevailed  in  the  Pennsylvania  line  towards  the  close  of 
the  year  1 780.  This  discontent  arose  from  three  causes, 
each  of  them  involving  an  alleged  violation  of  the  con- 
tract which  the  State  had  made  with  the  soldiers. 
These  were,  first,  the  non-payment  of  the  men,  or 
rather  their  payment  in  a  nominal  currency  far  depre- 
ciated beyond  what  they  had  agreed  to  receive  ;  sec- 
ondly, an  insufficient  supply  of  provisions  and  clothing  ; 
and,  thirdly,  the  conviction  that  it  was  the  intention  of 
the  authorities  to  hold  all  those  soldiers  who  had  en- 
listed for  three  years  or  the  war  for  the  latter  period. 
The  soldiers  complained — and  it  seems  to  us,  from  all 
the  testimony  accessible,  with  good  reason — that  to  keep 
them  for  an  indefinite  period,  subject  to  all  the  priva- 
tions from  which  they  suffered,  was  unjust  and  wrongful. 
It  may  be  said  in  palliation  of  their  conduct  in  taking 
the  redress  of  their  grievances  into  their  own  hands, 
that  their  mutinous  acts  were  regarded  by  them  as  pro- 
tests against  the  violation  of  the  contracts  made  on  the 
part  of  the  State  when  they  entered  her  service.  Wayne, 
knowing  well  how  wide-spread  was  the  feeling  of  dis- 
content among  his  troops,  looked  forward  to  the  first  of 


24o  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

the  coming  January,  when  the  three  years'  enlistment 
of  his  men  would  expire,  with  ominous  apprehension. 
"  You  may  believe  me,"  he  writes  to  Colonel  Johnston  on 
the  1 6th  of  December,  "  that  the  exertions  of  the  House 
[the  Assembly]  were  never  more  necessary  than  at  this 
crisis  to  adopt  some  effectual  mode  and  immediate  plan 
to  alleviate  the  distress  of  the  troops,  and  to  conciliate 
their  minds  and  sweeten  their  tempers,  which  are  much 
soured  by  neglect  and  every  extreme  of  wretchedness 
for  want  of  almost  every  comfort  and  necessary  of  life.', 
Again,  he  writes  to  President  Reed  about  the  same 
time,  "Our  soldiers  are  not  devoid  of  reasoning  facul- 
ties, nor  callous  to  the  first  feelings  of  nature.  They 
have  now  served  their  country  for  nearly  five  years  with 
fidelity,  poorly  clothed,  badly  fed,  and  worse  paid.  I 
have  not  seen  a  paper  dollar  in  the  way  of  pay  for  more 
than  twelve  months."  So  Major  Church  writes,  "As 
my  time  in  the  service  soon  expires,  I  am  not  entitled 
to  draw  rations.  It  is  very  distressing.  I  have  not  a 
farthing  of  money,  nor  has  the  regiment  received  any 
these  fourteen  months." 


General  Wayne  to  Colonel  Johnston  {at  Philadelphia). 

Mount  Kemble  16th  Dec'r  1780 

My  dear  Col., — I  sincerely  wish  the  Ides  of  Jany  was  come  & 
past — I  am  not  superstitious,  but  can't  help  cherishing  disagreeable 
Ideas  about  that  period. 

I  know  that  I  have  the  hearts  of  the  soldiery  &  that  my  presence 
is  absolutely  necessary  in  Camp 

You  may  believe  me  my  D'r  Sir  that  the  exertions  of  the  House 
were  never  more  necessary  than  at  this  Crisis  to  adopt  some  effectual 
mode  &  Immediate  plan  to  Alleviate  the  distress  of  the  Troops  & 
to  conciliate  their  minds  &  sweeten  their  tempers  which  are  much 


REVOLT  OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA   LINE.      241 

soured  by  neglect  &  every  extreme  of  wretchedness   for  want  of 
almost  every  comfort  &  necessary  of  life — 

Had  I  it  in  my  power  to  assure  them  that  as  a  reward  for  past 
services  &  their  more  than  Roman  Virtue  the  Hon'ble  Assembly 
had  given  them  a  solid  landed  property  which  might  at  any  time  be 
turned  into  Specie  equal  or  Superior  to  the  nominal  debt  due  them, 
I  am  confident  that  we  should  restore  Content  &  Insure  fidelity,  on 
the  Contrary  we  have  every  thing  to  fear  from  their  Defection,  how- 
ever I  am  Determined  to  brave  the  storm  &  am 

Yours  most  Affectionately 
Ant'y  Wayne. 

Col.  Johnston. 

This  condition  of  the  army  caused  the  most  serious 
apprehensions  on  the  part  of  the  public,  and  what  was 
not  done  either  by  the  Congressional  or  by  the  State 
authorities  to  afford  relief  was  attempted  by  private 
enterprise  and  benevolence  in  Philadelphia.  To  relieve 
the  wants  of  the  soldiers  the  Bank  of  North  America 
was  established  in  that  city,  in  the  hope  that  by  its 
means  money  might  be  raised  for  their  pay ;  and  the 
women  there,  headed  by  Mrs.  Reed,  the  wife  of  the 
President,  and  Mrs.  Bache,  the  daughter  of  Dr.  Frank- 
lin, set  to  work  in  earnest  to  procure  material,  from 
which  were  made  and  sent  to  camp  large  quantities  of 
clothing, — even  more  needed  at  that  inclement  season 
by  the  soldiers  than  their  pay.  But  these  remedies 
had  been  delayed  too  long  or  were  upon  too  small  a 
scale  to  produce  an  immediate  impression  or  to  pre- 
vent an  explosion.  Wayne  endeavored  by  stricter  re- 
straint and  discipline  to  bring  his  men  completely  under 
his  control.  They  complained,  and  he  replied  that  he 
would  much  rather  be  accused  of  severity  than  of  a 
relaxation  of  discipline. 

17 


242  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

Between  nine  and  ten  o'clock  on  the  evening  of  the 
i  st  of  January,  1 781,  the  men  of  the  Pennsylvania  line, 
with  few  exceptions,  rushed  from  their  huts,  paraded 
under  arms  without  officers,  supplied  themselves  with 
ammunition  and  provisions,  seized  six  pieces  of  artil- 
lery, and  took  the  horses  from  the  general's  stables. 
The  following  letter  from  General  Wayne  to  General 
Washington  presents  a  striking  picture  of  this  frightful 
scene : 

Mount  Kemble  2d  Jan :  1781 
Half  after  4  o'clock  A.M. 

Dear  General, — It  is  with  pain  I  now  inform  your  Excellency 
of  the  general  mutiny  &  defection  which  suddenly  took  place  in 
the  Penn'a  line  between  9  &  10  o'clock  last  evening —  Every 
possible  exertion  was  used  by  the  officers  to  suppress  it  in  its  rise ; 
but  the  torrent  was  too  potent  to  be  stemmed.  Captain  Bitting 
has  fallen  a  victim  to  his  zeal  and  duty,  Captain  Tolbert  &  Lieu- 
tenant White  are  reported  mortally  wounded,  a  very  considerable 
number  of  the  field  &  other  officers  are  much  injured  by  strokes 
from  muskets,  bayonets  &  stones,  nor  have  the  rioters  escaped  with 
impunity —  Many  of  their  bodies  lay  under  our  horses'  feet,  and 
others  will  retain  with  existence  the  traces  of  our  swords  and  espon- 
toons.  They  finally  moved  from  the  ground  about  eleven  o'clock 
last  night,  scouring  the  grand  parade  with  round  &  grape  shot  from 
four  field  pieces,  the  troops  advancing  in  solid  column  with  fixed 
bayonets,  producing  a  diffusive  fire  of  musketry  in  front,  flank 
&  rear. 

During  this  horrid  scene  a  few  officers  with  myself  were  carried 
by  the  tide  to  the  forks  of  the  road  at  Mount  Kemble,  but  placing 
ourselves  on  that  leading  to  Elizabethtown,  produced  a  conviction 
in  the  soldiery  that  they  could  not  advance  on  that  route  but  over 
our  dead  bodies.     They  fortunately  turned  towards  Princeton. 

Colonels  Butler  &  Stewart  (to  whose  spirited  exertions  I  am  much 
indebted)  will  accompany  me  to  Vealtown  where  the  troops  now 
are.  We  had  our  escapes  last  night —  Should  we  not  be  equally 
fortunate  to-day  our  friends  will  have  this  consolation,  that  we  did 


REVOLT  OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA   LINE.      243 

not  commit  the  honor  of  the  United  States  or  our  own  on  this 
unfortunate  occasion. 

Adieu,  my  dear  General,  &  believe  me  &c 

Anthony  Wayne. 

One  of  the  most  curious  features  of  this  remarkable 
revolt  was  the  manner  in  which  the  so-called  mutineers 
treated  their  officers.  There  does  not  seem  to  have 
been  any  animosity  towards  them  as  such,  and  force 
was  employed  by  the  mutineers  only  when  for  their 
purposes  it  was  necessary  to  disarm  them.  On  Wayne's 
pointing  his  pistols  at  them  at  the  beginning  of  the 
outbreak  there  were  a  hundred  bayonets  at  his  breast, 
and  those  who  handled  them  exclaimed,  "  We  love  you, 
we  respect  you,  but  you  are  a  dead  man  if  you  fire. 
Do  not  mistake  us  :  we  are  not  going  to  the  enemy  ;  on 
the  contrary,  were  they  now  to  come  out  you  would 
see  us  fight  under  your  orders  with  as  much  resolution 
and  alacrity  as  ever."  This  disposition  of  the  soldiery 
was  confirmed  by  their  permitting  the  general  and  Col- 
onels Richard  Butler  and  Walter  Stewart  to  accompany 
them.  These  officers,  at  apparently  great  personal  risk, 
remained  with  the  revolters  for  nearly  two  weeks,  pre- 
venting them  from  doing  further  mischief,  and  acting 
as  their  mediators  with  the  State  and  Congressional 
authorities  in  an  effort  to  bring  about  a  settlement  of 
their  grievances.  During  their  march  to  Trenton  they 
kept  up,  according  to  President  Reed,  "  an  astonishing 
regularity  and  discipline."  A  great  alarm  was,  of  course, 
caused  by  the  march  of  the  revolted  troops  towards 
Philadelphia,  and  Congress  appointed  a  committee  to 
confer  with  them,  who  do  not  seem  to  have  gone  be- 
yond Bristol.     The  President,  with  more  boldness,  met 


244  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE, 

them  in  their  camp  near  Princeton  and  listened  to  their 
complaints.  He  was  received  with  a  military  salute. 
"Their  first  demand,"  he  says,  "was  that  whoever  was 
tired  of  the  service  might  be  discharged."  This  was 
at  once  refused.  "Their  nominal  leader  was,"  he  tells 
us,  "a  very  poor  creature,  and  very  fond  of  liquor," 
and  he  seems  to  think  that  the  extravagance  of  his 
proposition  is  to  be  accounted  for  in  that  way. 

After  a  great  deal  of  peaceful  and  temperate  discus- 
sion between  the  soldiers  and  President  Reed  and 
Vice-President  Potter,  representing  the  State,  the  fol- 
lowing settlement  was  agreed  upon  and  carried  out  : 

i.  That  no  soldier  shall  be  retained  beyond  the 
period  of  his  enlistment,  and  where  it  appears  that  the 
enlistment-paper  has  not  been  signed  voluntarily  the 
man  shall  be  discharged. 

2.  In  order  to  settle  whether  the  man  enlisted  for 
three  years  or  indefinitely  for  the  war,  a  board  shall  be 
appointed  by  the  government. 

3.  The  bounty  of  one  hundred  dollars  given  by 
Congress  for  re-enlistment  shall  not  be  regarded  as 
conclusive  evidence  that  the  man  enlisted  for  the  war. 

4.  Auditors  to  be  appointed  at  once  to  settle  the  pay 
of  the  men. 

5.  Clothing  to  be  issued  in  a  few  days  to  all  the  men 
who  are  to  be  discharged. 

6.  General  amnesty  and  oblivion. 

On  the  29th  of  January  Wayne  writes  to  Washington 
giving  an  account  of  the  final  settlement  of  the  revolt, 
and  tells  him  that  out  of  the  two  thousand  four  hun- 
dred men  composing  the  Pennsylvania  line  the  commis- 
sioners of  Congress  under  the  above-cited  agreement 


REVOLT  OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  LINE.      245 

had  found  that  twelve  hundred  and  fifty  were  entitled 
to  their  discharge.  He  says,  "  We  shall  retain  more 
than  two-thirds  of  the  troops.  The  soldiers  are  as  im- 
patient of  liberty  as  they  were  of  service." 

Thus  terminated  what  seemed  to  the  panic-stricken 
people  of  the  time,  and  perhaps  still  more  so  to  the 
conscience-stricken  legislators  in  Congress  and  the  As- 
sembly, a  most  formidable  and  dangerous  revolt.  Re- 
duced to  its  true  proportions,  it  now  appears  simply  as 
a  lawless  and  irregular  method  of  seeking  a  redress  of 
grievances  of  an  intolerable  kind  and  of  long  duration, 
the  existence  of  which  was  recognized  on  all  hands. 
The  people  in  those  days  felt,  owing  to  their  English 
traditions,  a  wholesome  alarm  at  any  appearance  of  an 
attempt  of  the  military  to  usurp  the  powers  of  the  civil 
authorities.  Even  General  Washington  himself  was 
not  insensible  to  the  dangers  which  might  result  if 
the  authority  of  the  troops  was  not  subordinated  at  all 
times  to  that  of  the  Legislature.  It  is  true  that  on  the 
3d  of  January,  upon  hearing  of  the  mutiny,  he  wrote  to 
Wayne,  "  The  officers  have  given  convincing  proof  that 
every  thing  possible  was  done  by  them  to  check  the 
mutiny  on  its  first  appearance,  and  it  is  to  be  regretted 
that  some  of  them  have  fallen  sacrifices  to  their  zeal." 
But  on  the  29th  of  January  he  writes  in  a  different  tone 
to  the  governors  of  the  several  States:  "The  weak- 
ness of  this  garrison  and  still  more  its  embarrassment 
and  distress  from  a  want  of  provisions  made  it  impos- 
sible to  prosecute  such  measures  with  the  Pennsyl- 
vanians  as  the  nature  of  the  case  demanded,  and  while 
we  were  making  arrangements  as  far  as  practicable  to 
supply  these  defects  an  accommodation  took  place  which 


246  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

will  not  only  subvert  the  Penn'a  line  but  have  a  very 
pernicious  influence  upon  the  whole  army."  Washing- 
ton, when  he  first  heard  of  the  mutiny,  evidently  ap- 
prehending further  trouble,  wrote  immediately  to  the 
governors  of  the  New  England  States  in  this  strain 
♦(January  5,  1 78 1)  :  "The  aggravated  calamities  and 
distresses  that  have  resulted  from  the  total  want  of 
pay  for  nearly  twelve  months,  the  want  of  clothing 
at  a  severe  season,  and  not  infrequently  the  want  of 
provisions,  are  beyond  description."  So  when,  shortly 
after,  a  revolt  of  very  small  proportions  took  place  in 
the  Jersey  line  from  the  same  causes,  measures  were 
taken  to  crush  it  out  at  once. 

There  were  several  reasons  which  rendered  the 
Pennsylvania  revolt  in  the  eyes  of  the  authorities,  both 
military  and  civil,  much  more  serious  than  a  mere  man- 
ifestation of  the  discontent  of  the  soldiers.  The  army 
of  Washington  at  that  time  was  in  a  most  critical  con- 
dition, believed  by  many,  including  the  enemy,  to  be 
at  the  point  of  dissolution,  and  the  Pennsylvania  line 
formed  the  larger  portion  of  that  army.  One  great 
fear  was  that  the  mutineers  might  join  the  British 
army.  The  English  had  made  every  preparation  to 
receive  them  at  Elizabethtown  and  Perth  Amboy,  five 
thousand  troops  having  been  detached  for  that  purpose. 
Sir  H.  Clinton,  as  soon  as  he  heard  of  the  mutiny,  de- 
spatched spies  to  the  camp  of  the  insurgents  to  induce 
them  to  join  him,  and  offered  to  receive  them  into  the 
English  army  under  the  most  favorable  conditions.1 
These  proposals  reached  those  in  revolt  on  the  7th 
of  January.     Instead  of  being  entertained,  they  were 

1  Moore,  129. 


REVOLT  OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA   LINE,      247 

promptly  rejected  by  the  soldiers,  they  spurning  the 
idea  of  "becoming  Arnolds"  as  they  expressed  it. 
They  placed  the  two  bearers  of  these  propositions  in 
confinement  as  spies,  and  before  their  submission  they 
were  ready  to  hang  them.  They  sent  the  overtures  of 
the  British  general  to  Wayne,  with  a  solemn  assurance 
"  that  should  any  hostile  movement  be  made  by  the 
enemy  the  Division  would  immediately  march  under 
their  old  Beloved  Commander  to  meet  and  repel  it." 
Certainly  such  men  never  had  any  intention  of  desert- 
ing the  American  cause  for  the  purpose  of  joining  the 
British  army.  In  the  pride  of  their  patriotism  they 
spurned  the  reward  which  was  offered  them  for  the 
capture  of  the  spies. 

Another  cause  of  alarm  with  many  was  the  fear  that 
the  revolters  would  proceed  in  a  body  to  Philadelphia 
and  overawe  Congress  and  the  Assembly  into  granting 
their  claims.  So  considerable  a  person  as  General  St. 
Clair,  who  commanded  the  division,  was  disposed  to 
think  that  they  should  be  allowed  to  cross  the  river,  for 
then  they  could  not  desert  to  the  enemy ;  but  President 
Reed  and  the  Committee  of  Congress  evidently  thought 
that  in  order  to  avoid  the  imminent  danger  of  coercing 
the  civil  authorities  some  binding  compromise  or  agree- 
ment should  be  made  with  them  before  they  came 
within  their  reach.  Much  false  pride  was  undoubtedly 
sacrificed  on  the  part  of  the  authorities  in  bringing  the 
quarrel  to  an  early  settlement.  What  the  soldiers 
might  have  done  had  they  reached  Philadelphia  it  is  in 
vain  to  speculate,  but  it  is  very  clear  that  the  terms  of 
the  final  settlement  were  fair,  equitable,  and  just. 

Various  theories  have  been  put  forward  to  explain 


248  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

this  revolt.  No  explanation  is  needed  beyond  the  in- 
tolerable condition  of  the  men  and  their  neglect  by 
Congress  and  the  State.  A  curious  error  has  been 
fallen  into  by  many  historians,  including  Mr.  Bancroft, 
in  speaking  of  the  Pennsylvania  line,  that  "  it  was  com- 
posed in  a  large  degree  of  new-comers  from  Ireland," 
and  this  has  been  said  not  only  to  account  for  the  al- 
leged lawlessness  and  disaffection  of  the  men  at  the 
time  of  the  revolt,  but  also  (by  General  Harry  Lee) 
to  explain  the  extraordinary  brilliancy  of  their  courage 
on  the  battle-field.  These  writers  are  evidently  think- 
ing of  the  characteristic  qualities  of  the  Celtic  Irish- 
man in  war;  but  there  were  not,  it  is  said  on  good 
authority,  more  than  three  hundred  persons  of  Irish 
birth  (Roman  Catholic  and  Celtic)  in  the  Pennsylvania 
line.  Two-thirds  of  the  force  were  Scotch-Irish,  a  race 
with  whose  fighting  qualities  we  are  all  familiar,  but 
which  are  quite  opposite  to  those  that  characterize  the 
true  Irish  Celt.  Most  of  them  were  descendants  of 
the  Scotch-Irish  emigrants  of  171 7-1 730,  and  very  few 
of  them  were  "  new-comers."  x 

1  In  regard  to  the  statement  that  the  Pennsylvania  line  was  com- 
posed mainly  of  Irish,  the  following  letters,  one  from  Dr.  William 
H.  Egle,  the  State  Librarian,  the  other  from  John  Blair  Linn,  Esq., 
of  Bellefonte,  both  of  them  editors  of  the  Pennsylvania  Archives, 
which  contain  the  lists  of  the  soldiers  of  the  Revolution  from  this 
State  preserved  at  Harrisburg,  should  prove  satisfactorily  that  it  was 
made  without  authority  : 

State  Library  of  Pennsylvania. 

Harrisburg,  Pa.,  April  II,  1892. 
Charles  J.  Stille,  LL.D., 
Philadelphia. 
My  dear  Sir, — In  reply  to  your  inquiry  of  9th  April,  permit  me 
to  state  that  Mr.  Bancroft  and  other  writers  were  entirely  wrong  in 


REVOLT  OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  LINE.      249 

On  the  whole,  then,  it  would  appear  that  the  mutiny 
of  the  Pennsylvania  line  on  investigation  amounted  to 

their  statement  as  to  the  nationality  of  the  soldiers  of  Wayne's 
Division.  With  the  exception  of  the  Scotch-Irish,  who  formed  about 
two-thirds  of  his  force,  the  remainder  were  almost  wholly  of  German 
parentage.  In  the  French  and  Indian  War  the  emigrants  from  the 
Province  of  Ulster  were  chiefly  selected,  while  those  of  pure  Irish 
descent  or  migration  were  rejected  on  the  ground  that  they  were 
Roman  Catholics  and  that  they  would  not  be  loyal  to  the  Province 
when  opposed  by  the  French  troops.  If  you  so  desire,  when  the  op- 
portune time  arrives  I  might  amplify  what  I  have  here  simply  alluded 
to.  The  Irish  were  not  in  it,  although  all  immigrants  from  Ireland 
were  thus  claimed.  The  facts  are,  few  Irish  came  until  after  the  War 
of  the  Revolution.  I  doubt  if  there  were  300  persons  of  Irish  birth 
(Roman  Catholic  and  Celtic)  in  the  war  from  Pennsylvania. 

Yours  with  respect, 

William  H.  Egle. 

Bellefonte,  Pa.,  April  11,  1892. 

My  dear  Sir, — Mr.  Bancroft  and  General  Henry  Lee  were  cer- 
tainly in  error  in  stating  that  the  Pennsylvania  Line  was  composed 
for  the  most  part  of  Hibernians  who  emigrated  and  enlisted  in  our 
army. 

The  Scotch-Irish  emigration  of  171 7-1 730  in  its  descendants 
furnished  the  bone  and  sinew  of  the  Pennsylvania  Line.  Except  in 
a  few  regiments  from  the  neighborhood  of  Philadelphia  there  were 
very  few  then  recent  emigrants  enlisted  in  the  Line. 

Sons  of  German  emigrants  furnished  quite  a  respectable  portion 
of  the  Line,  as  the  rolls  of  companies  from  Northampton,  Bucks, 
Lancaster,  indicate  by  their  patronymic  denomination.  There  were 
a  few  sons  of  English  emigrants;  but  the  Scotch-Irish  of  Phila- 
delphia, Chester,  Lancaster,  Cumberland,  Northumberland,  Alle- 
gheny, and  Westmoreland  Counties  composed  the  large  majority  of 
the  Pennsylvania  Line,  as  the  names  indicate,  confirmed  by  very 
extensive  examination  of  Pension  applications,  rolls  at  Harrisburg, 
and  extensive  acquaintance  with  families  in  central  and  western 
Pennsylvania,  who  were    represented   in   the   Pennsylvania    Line. 


250  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

this  :  It  was  adopted  as  the  only  method  within  the 
power  of  the  men  to  compel  the  authorities,  State  and 
Congressional,  to  do  them  justice,  or,  in  other  words,  to 
keep  their  contract  with  them.  They  asked  for  three 
things,  as  we  have  said,  which  having  been  promised 
them  were  withheld, — namely,  pay,  clothing,  and  pro- 
visions. Having  enlisted  for  three  years,  they  insisted 
that  they  should  be  discharged  at  the  end  of  their  term, 
and  not  be  kept  illegally  under  arms  because  the  mili- 
tary authorities  thought  that  as  veterans  they  would 
prove  more  useful  than  raw  recruits.  The  substan- 
tial justice  of  their  claims  cannot  be  denied,  although 
their  method  of  asserting  them  was  unlawful.  The 
authorities,  therefore,  in  yielding  did  not  violate  the 
true  theory  of  military  discipline,  which  is  based  quite 
as  much  upon  the  justice  of  those  who  command  as 

They  were  Scotch-Irish  Presbyterians :  Irvines,  Chambers,  Butlers, 
Potter,  Wilson,  McAllister,  McFarlane,  Hollidays,  McClellan,  Grier, 
Buchanan,  Simonton,  Thompson,  McClean,  etc.,  etc.,  emigrants 
and  sons  of  emigrants  from  the  North  of  Ireland,  from  Antrim, 
Londonderry,  Tyrone,  Donegal,  Fermanagh,  and  Cavan,  as  I  have 
had  occasion  to  trace  them.  In  central  and  western  Pennsylvania, 
in  the  frontier  counties,  there  were  a  good  many  Scotch-Irish  emi- 
grants who  came  on  between  1769  and  1774,  who  enlisted,  as  rolls 
compared  with  old  Church  records  show. 

There  is  nothing  in  the  annals  of  Pennsylvania,  as  far  as  I  have 
examined  them,  to  sustain  the  assertion  that  Irish  emigrants,  as  dis- 
tinguished from  the  Scotch-Irish,  formed  a  component  portion  of 
the  Pennsylvania  Line,  but  much  to  the  contrary. 

Respectfully 

Your  ob't  serv't, 

John  B.  Linn. 
Charles  J.  Stille,  LL.D., 
Philadelphia,  Pa. 


REVOLT  OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA   LINE.      251 

upon  the  implicit  obedience  of  those  who  are  com- 
manded. 

Exactly  how  far  the  American  government  at  that 
time,  considering  its  own  origin,  was  in  a  condition  to 
exact  absolute  compliance  with  its  orders  when  it  had 
violated  constantly  the  rights  of  the  soldiers,  it  is  not 
worth  while  to  inquire.  But  we  must  remember  always 
how  completely  this  revolt  differed  in  its  cause  and 
progress  from  ordinary  military  revolts.  There  was  no 
disaffection  to  the  cause  for  which  they  had  for  five 
years  been  fighting,  there  was  no  licentious  soldiery 
carrying  terror  among  the  unarmed  inhabitants  and 
plundering  them  when  free  from  the  control  of  their 
officers,  and  they  never  asked  for  anything  to  which  in 
the  opinion  of  all  they  were  not  fully  entitled. 

It  is  impossible  to  read  any  faithful  account  of  this  re- 
volt without  being  struck  with  the  attachment  and  de- 
votion of  his  soldiers  to  General  Wayne,  and  the  wise 
and  judicious  measures  which  he  took  to  lessen  the 
evils  attendant  upon  it.  We  have  seen  how  earnestly 
he  pleaded  with  the  authorities  to  take  such  measures 
before  it  broke  out  as  would  have  rendered  it  unneces- 
sary. When  such  efforts  failed  he  was  the  strict  disci- 
plinarian, striving  in  vain  to  repress  the  mutiny  with 
arms  in  his  hands.  When  all  military  order  and  disci- 
pline had  been  subverted,  he  and  his  brave  comrades, 
Richard  Butler  and  Walter  Stewart,  forgetful  of  per- 
sonal danger,  remained  with  the  men,  not,  certainly, 
with  any  immediate  expectation  of  subduing  the  revolt, 
but  with  the  hope  of  preventing  the  most  dangerous 
consequences  which  were  feared  from  it, — the  desertion 
of  the  soldiers  to  the  enemy  or  their  coercion  of  Con- 


252  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

gress.  When  they  were  disposed  to  return  to  their 
duty  upon  an  intimation  that  their  reasonable  claims 
would  be  granted,  Wayne  was  the  trusted  mediator 
whose  counsels  brought  peace  and  safety  at  this  dan- 
gerous crisis.  Seldom  has  a  general  with  revolted 
troops  had  such  a  task  to  perform,  and  never  was  it 
performed  more  nobly  and  more  successfully. 

The  following  official  account  of  the  revolt  of  the 
Pennsylvania  line  is  taken  from  the  letters  found  in 
the  collection  of  the  Wayne  MSS. : 

General  Wayne1  s  Order  concerni?ig  the  Mutiny. 

Head  Quarters 
Mount  Kemble  2nd  Jan'y,  1781 

Agreeably  to  the  proposition  of  a  very  great  proportion  of  the 
Worthy  Soldiery  last  evening  Gen'l  Wayne  hereby  desires  the  Non 
Commissioned  Officers  &  privates  to  Appoint  one  man  from  each 
Reg't  to  represent  their  Grievances  to  the  Gen'l  who  upon  the 
Sacred  Honor  of  a  Gentleman  &  a  Soldier  does  hereby  solemnly 
promise  to  exert  every  power  to  Obtain  an  Immediate  redress  of 
those  Grievances  &  he  further  plights  that  Honor  that  no  man  shall 
receive  the  least  Injury  on  account  of  the  part  he  may  have  taken 
upon  this  Occasion,  &  that  the  persons  of  those  who  may  be  Ap- 
pointed to  settle  this  affair,  shall  be  held  sacred  &  Inviolate 

The  General  hopes  soon  to  return  to  Camp  with  all  his  brother 
Soldiers  who  took  a  little  tour  last  evening 

Ant'y  Wayne  B.G. 

General  Washington  to  General  Wayne. 

Head  Quarters  New  Windsor 
3rd  January  1781 

My  dear  Sir, — I  this  day  at  Noon  reed,  yours  of  the  2nd  in  the 
morning,  by  Major  Fishbourn,  who  has  given  me  a  full  account  of 
the  unhappy  and  alarming  defection  of  the  Pennsylvania  line.  The 
officers  have  given  convincing  proof  that  every  thing  possible  was 


REVOLT  OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA   LINE.      253 

done  by  them  to  check  the  mutiny  upon  its  first  appearance,  and  it 
is  to  be  regretted  that  some  of  them  have  fallen  Sacrifices  to  their 
Zeal.  I  very  much  approve  of  the  determination  of  yourself,  Col'l 
Butler  and  Col'l  Stewart  to  keep  with  the  troops,  if  they  will  admit 
of  it,  as,  after  the  first  transports  of  passion,  there  may  be  some 
favorable  intervals  which  may  be  improved.  I  do  not  know  where 
this  may  find  you,  or  in  what  Situation.  I  can  therefore  only  advise 
what  seems  to  me  most  proper  at  this  distance  and  upon  a  consider- 
ation of  all  circumstances. 

Opposition,  as  it  did  not  succeed  in  the  first  instance  cannot  be 
effectual  while  the  men  remain  together,  but  will  keep  alive  resent- 
ment and  will  tempt  them  to  turn  about  and  go  in  a  body  to  the 
enemy,  who  by  their  Emissaries  will  use  every  Argument  and  means 
in  their  power  to  persuade  them  that  it  is  their  only  Asylum,  which, 
if  they  find  their  passage  stopped  at  the  Delaware,  and  hear  that  the 
Jersey  Militia  are  collecting  in  their  rear,  they  may  think  but  too 
probable.  I  would  therefore  recommend  it  to  you  to  cross  the 
Delaware  with  them,  draw  from  them  what  they  conceive  to  be  their 
principal  Grievances  and  promise  to  represent  faithfully  to  Congress 
and  to  the  State  the  Substance  of  them  and  to  endeavour  to  obtain 
a  redress.  If  they  could  be  stopped  at  Bristol  or  Germantown  the 
better —  I  look  upon  it,  that  if  you  can  bring  them  to  a  negocia- 
tion,  matters  may  afterwards  be  accommodated,  but  that  an  attempt 
to  reduce  them  by  force  will  either  drive  them  to  the  Enemy  or  dis- 
sipate them  in  such  a  manner  that  they  will  never  be  recovered. 

Major  Fishbourn  informs  me  that  General  Potter  and  Col'l 
Johnston  had  gone  forward  to  apprise  Congress  of  this  unhappy 
event,  and  to  advise  them  to  go  out  of  the  way  to  avoid  the  first 
burst  of  the  storm.  It  was  exceedingly  proper  to  give  Congress  and 
the  State  notice  of  the  Affair  that  they  might  be  prepared,  but  the 
removal  of  Congress,  waving  the  indignity,  might  have  a  very  un- 
happy influence —  The  mutineers  finding  the -Body,  before  whom 
they  were  determined  to  lay  their  Grievances,  fled,  might  take  a  new 
turn,  and  wreak  their  vengeance  upon  the  persons  and  properties  of 
the  Citizens,  and  in  a  town  the  size  of  Philadelphia  there  are  num- 
bers who  would  join  them  in  such  a  business.  I  would  therefore 
wish  you,  if  you  have  time,  to  recall  that  advice  and  rather  recom- 
mend it  to  them  to  stay  and  hear  what  propositions  the  Soldiers 


254  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

have  to  make.  Immediately  upon  the  receipt  of  your  letter  I  took 
measures  to  inform  myself  of  the  temper  of  the  Troops  in  this 
quarter,  and  have  sent  into  the  Country  for  a  Small  Escort  of  Horse 
to  come  to  me,  and  if  nothing  alarming  appear  here  and  I  hear 
nothing  further  from  you,  I  shall,  tomorrow  morning,  set  out  to- 
ward Philadelphia  by  the  Route  of  Chester,  Warwick,  Col  Sewards, 
Davenports  Mill  Morris  Town  Somerset  Princetown,  Trenton,  on 
which  you  will  direct  any  dispatches  for  me.  As  I  shall  be  exceed- 
ingly anxious  to  hear  what  turn  matters  have  taken,  or  in  what  situ- 
ation they  remain,  you  will  be  pleased  to  let  me  hear  from  you. 

I  am  with  very  great  Regard 
Dear  Sir 

Your  most  Hble  Sert. 

G'e  Washington — 

P.  S.  4  Jany  7  o'clock  a.m.  Upon  second  thoughts  I  am  in 
doubt  whether  I  shall  come  down,  because  the  mutineers  must  have 
returned  to  their  duty  or  the  business  be  in  the  hands  of  Congress 
before  I  could  reach  you,  and  because  I  am  advised  by  such  of  the 
General  Officers  as  I  have  seen  not  to  leave  this  post  in  the  present 
Situation  of  things— temper  of  the  troops — and  distress  of  the  Gar- 
rison for  want  of  Flour,  Cloathing  and  in  short  everything — 

Brig.  Gen.  Wayne. 

Major  Moore  to  General  Wayne, 

Pennytown  Jan'y  5,  1781 
Dear  General, — On  Wednesday  night  about  eleven  o'clock  80 
Officers  armed  with  Col.  Craig  at  our  head  left  the  Hutts  &  pro- 
ceeded to  the  Middlebush  road  when  Hamilton  &  myself  (as  it  was 
thought  We  could  with  safety  pass  the  Troops)  were  detached  to  in- 
form you  of  the  approach  of  these  Officers  &  the  position  they  meant 
to  take.  We  arrived  at  the  Borders  of  Prince  town  yesterday  at  12 
o'clock,  were  stopped  by  a  Guard,  treated  with  a  great  deal  of  inso- 
lence &  turned  back.  Col.  Craig  &  those  I  first  mentioned  have 
rode  round  to  Allentown  &  from  there  I  believe  will  cross  the  river. 
We  have  arranged  ourselves  here  in  two  Companies  commanded  by 
Col  Harmar  &  wait  your  Orders — 


REVOLT  OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  LINE.      255 

The  Artillery  &  ammunition  which  was  left  is  in  good  order  &  I 
believe  will  be  brought  here — 

Please  to  give  my  compliments  to  Cols  Butler  &  Stewart.  I 
have  secured  the  Baggage  of  the  former.  Your  Baggage  to  Doctor 
Blatchleys. 

I  am  Sir,  with  confidence  & 
respect  yours 

Thos.  H.  Moore. 
Gen'l  Wayne — 

3  o'clock  P.M. 

N.B.  I  should  not  have  been  so  particular  but  this  goes  by  a 
safe  hand  T.  M. 

General  Wayne  to  President  Reed. 

Princeton  8th  Jany.  1781 
Dear  Sir, — Being  determined  to  bring  matters  to  a  speedy  Issue 
at  every  Consequence  &  risk,  we  sent  for  the  Serj'ts  at  ^  after  4 
OClock  this  Evening  &  Insisted  upon  their  marching  from  this  place 
towards  Trent-town  in  the  morning,  or  that  we  would  leave  them  to 
Act  as  they  pleased,  &  to  abide  the  bad  Effects  of  their  own  folly. 
In  consequence  of  which  they  had  come  to  a  Resolution  of  moving 
in  the  morning  &  bringing  along  the  two  Caitiffs  [the  spies],  pre- 
vious to  the  receipt  of  yours,  by  Mr.  Caldwell. 

I  am  Sir  Your  Most  Obt. 
Hum'l  Ser't 

Ant'y  Wayne. 
[To  Gov'r  Reed.] 

General  Wayne  and  Colonels  Butler  and  Stewart  to  the  Officers. 

Princeton  Jan'y  8th,  1781 
half-past  Eleven  o'clock 

Dear  Gentlemen, — This  accompanies  copies  of  the  orders,  prop- 
ositions, interrogations,  and  answers  which  have  passed  between  the 
troops  and  ourselves  since  the  unhappy  night  of  the  1st  Instant — 

Yesterday  President  Reed,  and  a  Committee  from  the  Council 
arrived  here  with  full  powers  to  settle  this  unhappy  disturbance; 
they  were  met  by  twelve  Serjeants ;  who  Laid  before  them  the  griev- 
ances Complaind  of  by  the  troops — 

Many  arguments  were  used  to  Convince  them  of  the  enormous 
injustice  which  some  of  their  demands  containd,  and  the  total  im- 


256  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

possibility  of  our  ever  receding  from  the  just  and  equitable  offers 
which  we  have  made — 

Their  demand  of  having  the  20  dollar  men  all  discharged,  seems 
still  to  remain  unalterable  in  their  minds,  and  you  may  rest  assured 
as  inadmissible  in  ours — 

Before  such  a  step  can  be  taken  (which  will  rob  us  of  ^ds  of  the 
Line)  a  total  dissolution  must  take  place,  and  we  must  depend  on 
Events  for  Collecting  them  together — 

This  morning  an  answer  is  to  be  received  from  them  which  will 
determine  the  line  of  Conduct  to  be  in  future  pursued 

Our  attendance  here,  our  unwearied  diligence  in  explaining  mat- 
ters to  the  soldiery,  and  the  Coolness  of  temper  to  which  we  have 
reduced  them,  will,  we  flatter  ourselves  meet  the  approbation  of  our 
Brother  officers  and  fellow  Citizens  in  General — 

On  hearing  of  your  anxiety  to  have  us  with  you,  we  determined 
at  all  events  to  quit  this  place  and  leave  them  to  follow  their  wild 
&  ungovernable  inclinations,  but  this  step  we  are  prevented  from 
taking  by  our  Worthy  Generals  advice ;  as  well  as  that  of  Governor 
Reed,  and  the  other  Gentlemen 

You  have  among  the  papers,  proposals  sent  the  Line  by  Sir  H'y 
Clinton,  the  propositions  as  well  as  the  Conveyers  of  them  were 
both  immediately  handed  to  us.  The  men  are  prisoners,  and  we  hope 
will  meet  the  fate  they  deserve 

It  was  a  happy  Circumstance  they  had  us  to  apply  to,  at  this 
alarming  and  important  moment  had  we  been  absent,  and  the  pro- 
posal left  to  work  on  the  minds  of  the  Soldiers — tis  difficult  to 
divine  what  the  result  might  have  been 

An  anxiety  for  your  Situation  adds  much  to  the  unhappiness  and 
distress  of  our  minds —  We  have  been  impatiently  waiting  to  hear 
from  you,  but  are  only  now  and  then  able  to  have  your  distress 
pictured  to  us  by  people  who  have  pass'd  amongst  you  That  our 
anxieties,  distress  of  mind  and  unhappiness  of  situation  may  soon 
terminate  is  the  ardent  wish  of 

Dear  Gent. 

Your  aff'te  friends 

A.  Wayne 
R.  Butler 
W.  Stewart 


REVOLT  OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA   LINE.      257 

Colonel  Hubley  to  General  Wayne. 

Dear  General, — We  have  just  received  your  favor  by  Mr.  Nes- 
bitt —  Your  unwearied  attention  to  settle  the  unhappy  dispute, 
must,  and  is  particularly  acknowledged,  by  all  who  I  have  had  any 
conversation  with —  From  appearance,  matters  will  shortly  be 
brought  to  an  issue — tho'  not  to  your  &  our  wishes,  yet  considering 
circumstances,  beyond  my  expectations. — 

I  hope  that  every  Credit  will  be  given  to  you  &  your  Colleagues, 
for  your  exertions,  for  my  part  I  shall  do  every  thing  in  my  power 
to  acquaint  my  friends  &  the  world  how  much  they  are  indebted  to 
you. —    I  am  with  my  best  Comp's  to  Col' Is  Stewart  &  Butler, 

Your  Obt  hum  Sert 

Ad'm  Hubley  Jr — 

N.B.    From  your  Letters  of  Yesterday,  I  fear  some  erroneous  repre- 
sentations with  respect  to  the  officers,  toward  you  and  your  Colleagues, 
have  been  made  to  you —    I  hope  we  shall  see  you  shortly  when 
you  will  be  Convinced  &  imbibe  a  very  different  opinion  of  us. 
[Addressed] 
Brigadier  Gen'l  Wayne 
Trenton 

Proposals  to  the  Mutineers. 

His  Excellency  Joseph  Reed  Esq'r  Governor  &  the  honb'le  Brig- 
adier General  Potter  of  the  Supreme  Executive  Council  of  the  State 
of  Pennsylvania  having  heard  the  Complaints  of  the  Soldiers,  as 
represented  by  the  Serjeants,  inform  them,  that  they  are  fully  au- 
thorized to  redress  reasonable  Grievances  &  they  have  the  fullest 
Disposition  to  make  them  as  easy  &  happy  as  possible  for  which  end 
they  propose — 

First — That  no  Non-Commissioned  Officer  or  Soldier  shall  be  de- 
tained beyond  the  time  for  which  he  freely  &  voluntarily  engaged 
— but  where  they  appear  to  have  been  in  any  Respect  compelled  to 
enter  or  sign, — such  Instruments  to  be  deemed  void  &  the  Soldier 
discharged — 

Secondly — To  settle  who  are  or  are  not  bound  to  stay  three  per- 
sons to  be  appointed  by  the  President  &  Council  who  are  to  ex- 
amine into  the  Terms  of  Inlistment — when  the  original  Inlistments 

18 


258  MAJOR-GENERAL   WAYNE. 

cannot  be  found  the  Soldier's  oath  to  be  admitted  to  prove  the 
Time  and  Terms  of  Inlistment,  &  the  Soldier  to  be  discharged  upon 
his  Oath  of  the  Condition  of  the  Inlistment — 

Thirdly — Wherever  any  Soldier  has  inlisted  for  three  years,  or 
during  the  war  he  is  to  be  discharged  unless  he  shall  appear  after- 
wards to  have  re-inlisted  voluntarily  &  freely — the  Gratuity  of  ioo 
Dollars  given  by  Congress,  not  to  be  reckoned  as  a  bounty  or  any 
men  to  be  detained  in  Consequence  of  receiving  that  Gratuity — 
The  Commissioners  to  be  appointed  by  the  President  &  Council  to 
adjust  any  Difficulties  which  may  arise  on  this  Article  also — 

Fourthly — The  Auditors  to  attend  as  soon  as  possible  to  settle  the 
Depreciation  with  the  Soldiers  &  give  them  Certificates —  Their 
Arrearages  of  Pay  to  be  made  up  as  soon  as  Circumstances  will 
admit  & 

Fifthly — A  Pair  of  Shoes,  Overalls  &  Shirt  will  be  delivered 
out  to  each  Soldier  in  a  few  days  as  they  are  already  purchased  & 
ready  to  be  sent  forward — whenever  the  Line  shall  be  settled — 
Those  who  are  discharged  to  receive  the  above  Articles  at  Trenton 
producing  the  General's  Discharge — 

The  Governor  hopes  that  no  Soldier  of  the  Pennsylvania  Line 
will  break  his  bargain  or  go  from  the  Contract  made  with  the  pub- 
lick  &  they  may  depend  upon  it  that  the  utmost  Care  will  be  taken 
to  furnish  them  with  every  necessary  fitting  for  a  soldier —  The 
Governor  will  recommend  to  the  State  to  take  some  favorable  notice 
of  those  who  engaged  for  the  War — 

The  Commissioners  will  attend  at  Trenton  when  the  Clothing, 
&  the  Stores  will  be  immediately  brought  &  the  Regiments  to  be 
settled  with,  in  their  Order —  A  Field  Officer  of  each  Regiment  to 
attend  during  the  Settlement  of  his  Regiment :  pursuant  to  Gen'l 
Waynes  Order  of  the  2nd  Instant 

No  Man  to  be  brought  to  any  Tryal  or  Censure  for  what  has  hap- 
pened on  or  since  New  Year's  Day  but  all  Matters  to  be  buried  in 
Oblivion — 

Jos.  Reed,  President 
Jas.  Potter 

[Gov'r  Reed  &  Genl. 

Potter's  proposal 

to  the  line — 1781], 


REVOLT  OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  LINE.      259 


The  Rev  otters  to  President  Reed. 

His  Excellency's  proposals  being  communicated  to  the  different 
Regiments  at  Troop  beating  this  morning  January  8th  1781 — 

They  do  voluntarily  agree  in  Conjunction  that  all  the  Soldiers  that 
were  inlisted  for  the  Bounty  of  twenty  dollars  ought  to  be  discharged 
Immediately  with  as  little  delay  as  Circumstances  will  allow — except 
such  Soldiers  who  have  been  since  voluntarily  re-inlisted,  the  re- 
mainder of  his  Excellencys  &  the  Honble  board  of  Committee's  pro- 
posals is  founded  upon  Honor  &  Justice  ;  but  in  regard  to  the  proposals 
of  the  Honble.  Board  seting  forth  that  there  will  be  appointed  three 
Persons  to  sit  as  a  Committee  to  Redress  our  grievances  it  is  there- 
fore the  General  demand  of  the  line,  and  the  board  of  Serjants  that 
we  shall  appoint  as  many  members  as  of  the  opposite  to  sit  as  a 
Committee  to  determine  justly  upon  our  unhappy  affair,  as  the  Path 
we  tread  is  Justice,  &  our  Footsteps  founded  upon  Honor — 

Therefore  we  do  unanimously  agree  that  their  should  be  some- 
thing done  towards  a  speedy  Redress  of  our  present  Circumstances — 

Signed 

Wm.  Bawser,  Sec'ty — 

Jan'y  8,  1 781 — Princetown — 

[Copy  of  the  Proposals  of  the  Serjeants  to 
the  President  &c  Jany.  8th  1781] 

President  Reed  to  the  Mutineers, 

Dear  Sir, — I  received  your  Favour  this  Evening,  &  also  the  Pro- 
posals signed  by  Sergeant  Bawser,  which  as  they  contain  in  Sub- 
stance what  was  offered  last  Evening  shall  be  granted  except  that  ap- 
pointing Persons  to  set  with  those  nominated  by  the  Honourable  the 
Council,  cannot  be  complied  with.  This  implies  such  a  Distrust  of 
the  Authority  of  the  State  which  has  ever  been  attentive  to  the 
wants  of  the  Army  that  the  Impropriety  of  it  must  be  evident.  But 
any  Soldier  will  have  Liberty  to  bring  before  the  Commissioners  any 
Person  as  his  Friend  to  represent  his  Case.  The  Hon.  the  Com- 
mittee of  Congress  have  resolved  that  the  Spies  sent  out  should  be 
delivered  up  as  soon  as  convenient  &  upon  that  being  done  Con- 
gress will  proclaim  a  general  Oblivion  of  all  Matters  since  the  31 


26o  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

December — provided  the  Terms  offered  last  Evening  are  closed 
with  &  the  Troops  remain  no  longer  in  their  present  State.  It 
is  my  clear  Opinion  that  they  should  march  in  the  morning  to 
Trenton  where  the  Stores  are,  their  Cloathing  expected  if  not  by 
this  Time  arrived,  by  which  I  mean  Overalls  &  some  Blankets — 
I  hope  they  will  come  to  a  Speedy  Determination  &  am  Dear  Sir 

Your  Obed  Hble  Serv't 

Jos  Reed. 

Jan.  8,  1781 

[8th  Jan'y  1781 

from 
Gov'r  J.  Reed] 

General  Wayne  to  General  Washington. 

Trenton  29th  January  1781 

Dear  General, — The  Commissioners  of  Congress  have  gone 
thro'  the  Settlement  of  Inlistments  of  the  Pennsylvania  Line  except 
a  few  Stragglers,  and  have  ordered  about  1250  men  to  be  discharged 
out  of  the  Aggregate  of  the  Infantry,  and  67  of  the  Artillery,  so 
that  we  may  count  upon  nearly  1150  remaining,  including  the  non- 
commissioned officers  furloughed  pursuant  to  the  Direction  of  the 
Commissioners  until  March  &  toward  April,  except  recruiting  Serg't 
&  Music. 

I  shall  leave  this  place  tomorrow  morning  after  seeing  the  Arms  & 
Accoutrements  forwarded  to  Philadelphia  where  I  shall  expect  your 
Excellency's  further  Orders.  General  Irvine  will  also  be  anxious  for 
your  Directions,  he  is  now  there  preparing  for  the  recruiting  Service. 

I  gave  early  Orders  to  the  Regimental  Quarter  Masters  to  secure 
the  public  stores  of  their  respective  Corps,  &  particular  Directions 
to  Mr.  Hughes  the  Division  Quarter  Master,  to  collect  the  whole 
and  return  them  to  Q.  M.  General's  Store  at  Morris  Town,  except 
the  few  Arms  &  Accoutrements  left  in  the  Huts,  which  I  have  ordered 
to  be  sent  to  this  place  by  the  Return  Waggons  &  so  by  Water  to 
Philadelphia.  I  am  happy  to  inform  you  that  the  loss  of  these 
essential  Articles  is  far  short  of  what  we  had  reason  to  expect,  indeed 
there  was  scarcely  a  man  discharged  or  furloughed  who  did  not  pro- 
duce a  Receipt  for  the  Delivery  of  his  Arms  &  Accoutrements. 


REVOLT  OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA   LINE.      261 

Inclosed  are  the  printed  Forms  of  Orders  for  Discharges — Dis- 
charges and  furloughs,  by  which  your  Excellency  will  find  that  I  have 
had  my  share  of  very  Distressing  Duty,  attended  with  some  disagree- 
able scenes  at  almost  every  Hour  of  Day  and  Night,  which  will  also 
palliate  for  any  seeming  neglect  in  point  of  frequent  Intelligence. 
I  have  the  Honor  to  be  in  every  Vicissitude  of  Fortune 
Your  Excellency's  most  obed't 
&  affectionate  hble  Serv't 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

B^T*  Inclosed  is  a  Philad'a  paper  of  the  24th  Instant  in  which 
you'l  see  that  some  Gentlemen  have  given  themselves  Ample  Credit 
for  the  part  they  have  had  in  this  unfortunate  affair. 

His  Excellency 
Gen'l  Washington. 

General  Washington  to  General  Wayne. 

Head  Quarters  New  Windsor 
Feby.  2nd  1 78 1 

Dear  Sir, — In  mine  of  the  29th  of  January  I  partly  answered 
yours  of  the  21st —  Yours  of  the  17th  had  been  duly  received, 
and  I  am  since  favored  with  that  of  the  29th  January 

I  am  satisfied,  that  every  thing  was  done  on  your  part  to  produce 
the  least  possible  evil  from  the  unfortunate  disturbance  in  your  line, 
and  that  your  influence  has  had  a  great  share  in  preventing  worse 
extremities —  I  felt  for  your  Situation —  Your  anxieties  &  fatigues 
of  mind  amidst  such  a  scene,  I  can  easily  conceive —  I  thank  you 
sincerely  for  your  exertions — 

You  request  to  be  exempted  from  the  recruiting  Service,  and  em- 
ployed in  the  field — at  present  the  last  is  not  possible — but  'till  you 
hear  further  from  me,  you  need  not  occupy  yourself  about  the  first — 
I  write  to  General  Irvine  by  this  opportunity 

With  the  greatest  regard 
I  am  Dear  Sir 

Your  most  Obed't  Serv't 

G'e  Washington 
Gen.  Wayne — 


262  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 


General  Wayne  to  General  Washington. 

PHIL'A  27th  Feby  1781 

Dear  General, — I  was  honored  with  your  favor  of  the  2d  Instant 
and  experience  much  happiness  in  your  Approbation  of  my  Conduct 
during  the  unfortunate  Defection  of  the  Penns'a  line.  But  as  I  am 
informed  that  the  tongue  of  slander  (among  some  Individuals  in  the 
State  of  N.  Jersey)  has  not  been  Idle  on  this  Occasion,  I  hold  it 
my  duty  to  mention  that  as  far  as  Orders  &  example  had  Influence 
the  persons  &  property  of  the  Inhabitants  were  protected  &  the 
strictest  discipline  Observed  Inclosed  is  a  Copy  of  one  of  the  last 
Orders  Issued  for  this  purpose,  which  was  faithfully  Observed  in 
every  minutia  on  the  part  of  the  Officers,  even  at  9  OClock  the 
night  of  the  revolt  at  which  hour  every  thing  appeared  favourable 
and  all  the  Soldiers  either  in  their  Hutts  or  properly  Accounted  for 
— Indeed  one  of  their  Complaints  was,  that  they  had  experienced 
more  restraint  &  strict  duty  than  usual  in  Winter —  however  I 
would  much  rather  be  accused  of  that — than  a  relaxation  of  Disci- 
pline— or  inattention  to  the  rights  of  the  Citizen  nor  was  any  legal 
means  left  unattempted  to  quiet  the  minds  of  the  troops  which  your 
Excely  will  see  by  the  Inclosed  copy  of  an  Order  of  the  Ultimo — 

It  is  with  pleasure  I  again  Assure  your  Excellency  that  I  am  very 
much  Indebted  to  all  the  Officers  for  their  attention  to  Duty  & 
Spirited  exertions  on  this  occasion  &  in  particular  to  Col' Is  Stew- 
art &  Butler  who  as  Commanding  Officers  of  Brigades  cheerfully 
risqued  their  lives  &  participated  in  every  vicissitude  of  fortune 
with  me — 

I  now  Inclose  your  Excellency  a  Copy  of  the  General  Officers 
answer  to  the  Queries  of  the  Honble.  House  of  Assembly,  &  their 
proceedings  thereon,  which  I  hope  will  be  productive  of  very  salu- 
tary effects — 

I  have  the  Honor  to  be  with 
Singular  Esteem 
Your  Excellency's 
Most  Obt 

&  very  Hum'l  Sert 

Anth'v  Wayne. 


[To  Gen'l  Washington.] 


CHAPTER    VII. 

THE   VIRGINIA   CAMPAIGN    AND   YORKTOWN. 

The  Pennsylvania  line  was  almost  wholly  dissolved 
by  the  revolt.  It  was  a  long  time  before  the  people 
recovered  from  the  panic  produced  by  it.  The  Board 
of  War,  indeed,  was  so  anxious  to  get  rid  of  what  they 
considered  the  dangerous  element  in  the  army  that 
they  not  only  paid  the  men  of  the  Pennsylvania  line  on 
their  discharge  what  was  due  them,  but  issued  to  each 
soldier  gratuitously  a  ration  for  every  twenty  miles  on 
his  way  homeward.  The  Congressional  committee, 
which  was  probably  not  very  strict  in  examining  the 
claims  for  discharge,  set  free  about  twelve  hundred  and 
fifty  men,  so  that  no  more  than  eleven  hundred  and 
fifty  remained  in  the  division.  General  Washington 
complained  that  this  commission  had  been  imposed 
upon,  but,  upon  the  advice  of  St.  Clair,  the  com- 
mander, the  matter  was  hushed  up.  Measures  were 
at  once  taken  to  recruit  the  regiments  and  to  reor- 
ganize the  division.  It  was  decided  to  reduce  the  num- 
ber of  regiments  to  six.  Of  course  it  was  necessary 
to  retire  a  proportionate  number  of  officers.  Of  the 
men  who  were  retained  many  were  veterans,  having 
served  continuously  for  five  years.  No  greater  proof 
could  be  given  of  the  confidence  they  inspired,  and  of 
Wayne's  high  qualities  as  a  leader,  than  that  shown 

by  the  eagerness  with  which  the  old  soldiers  as  well  as 

263 


264  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

the  officers  pressed  forward  to  serve  again  under  him. 
There  seems  to  have  been  no  effort  to  exclude  the 
former  mutineers  from  re-enlistment.  Two-thirds  of 
those  whose  time  had  expired  and  who  had  been  dis- 
charged were  desirous  of  re-entering  the  service  under 
Wayne's  command,  and,  in  his  language,  "  were  as  im- 
portunate for  service  as  they  had  been  for  their  dis- 
charge." The  trouble  was  not  with  the  service  nor 
with  the  officers,  but  with  the  broken  promises  of  the 
State  and  of  Congress  with  regard  to  their  pay  and 
clothing. 

On  the  26th  of  February,  1781,  Wayne  was  ordered 
to  command  a  detachment  of  the  Pennsylvania  line 
which  it  had  been  determined  to  send  as  a  reinforce- 
ment to  General  Greene,  then  in  charge  of  military 
affairs  in  South  Carolina.  The  detachment  was  to  con- 
sist of  details  from  each  of  the  six  regiments,  in  num- 
ber about  eight  hundred,  and  the  rendezvous  and  head- 
quarters were  established  at  York  in  Pennsylvania.1  It 
was  a  long  and  tedious  business  to  reorganize  the  men 
and  procure  the  needed  supplies  for  the  expedition. 
In  his  efforts  to  prepare  them  for  the  campaign  he  was 
embarrassed  by  difficulties  of  the  same  sort  that  he 
had  encountered  so  many  times  since  the  beginning 
of  the  war.  Recruits  for  the  expedition  were  scarce, 
the  needed  supplies  were  not  forthcoming,  and  the 
worthless  paper  which  was  given  him  to  pay  his  men 
it  was  soon  found  would  purchase  nothing  in  the  way 
of  the  commonest  necessaries.  No  allowance  was 
made    for   the   actual    depreciation    of   this    miscalled 

1  See  Appendix,  No.  III. 


THE    VIRGINIA    CAMPAIGN  AND    YORKTOWN      265 

money  below  its  nominal  value,  and,  as  was  most  natu- 
ral, there  was  much  discontent  on  the  part  of  the  men 
to  whom  it  was  offered,  and  mutterings  and  threats 
which,  according  to  the  law-martial,  came  very  near  to 
mutiny.  The  result  of  this  renewed  attempt  on  the 
part  of  the  State  to  pay  its  soldiers  in  nominal  money, 
when  it  had  agreed  to  pay  them  in  what  was  real,  is 
clearly  expressed  in  the  following  letter  of  Wayne  of 
May  20,  1 781  : 

"  When  I  arrived  at  York  there  was  scarcely  a  horse 
or  a  carriage  fit  to  transport  any  part  of  our  baggage 
or  supplies.  This  difficulty  I  found  means  to  remedy 
by  bartering  one  species  of  public  property  to  pro- 
cure another.  The  troops  were  retarded  in  advancing 
to  the  general  rendezvous  by  the  unaccountable  delay 
of  the  auditors  who  were  appointed  to  settle  and  pay 
the  proportion  of  the  depreciation  due  them,  which, 
when  received,  was  not  equal  to  one-seventh  part  of 
its  nominal  value.  This  was  an  alarming  circumstance. 
The  soldiery  but  too  sensibly  felt  the  imposition ;  nor 
did  the  conduct  or  counsel  of  the  inhabitants  tend  to 
moderate  but  rather  to  inflame  their  minds  by  refusing 
to  part  with  any  thing  which  the  soldiers  needed  in  ex- 
change for  it,  saying  it  was  not  worth  accepting,  and 
that  they  (the  soldiers)  ought  not  to  march  until  justice 
was  done  them.  To  minds  already  susceptible  to  this 
kind  of  impression  and  whose  recent  revolt  was  fresh 
in  their  memory  little  more  was  wanting  to  stimulate 
them  to  try  it  again.  The  day  antecedent  to  that  on 
which  the  march  was  to  commence,  a  few  leading  mu- 
tineers on  the  right  of  each  regiment  called  out  to 
pay  them  in  real  and  not  ideal  money :  they  were  no 


266  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

longer  to  be  trifled  with.  Upon  this  they  were  ordered 
to  their  tents,  which  being  peremptorily  refused,  the 
principals  were  immediately  either  knocked  down  or 
confined  by  the  officers,  who  were  previously  prepared 
for  this  event.  A  Court-martial  was  ordered  on  the 
spot, — the  commission  of  the  crime,  trial  and  execu- 
tion were  all  included  in  the  course  of  a  few  hours  in 
front  of  the  line  paraded  under  arms.  The  determined 
countenances  of  the  officers  produced  a  conviction  to 
the  soldiery  that  the  sentence  of  the  Court-martial 
would  be  carried  into  execution  at  every  risk  and  con- 
sequence. Whether  by  design  or  accident,  the  partic- 
ular friends  and  messmates  of  the  culprits  were  their 
executioners,  and  while  the  tears  rolled  down  their 
cheeks  in  showers,  they  silently  and  faithfully  obeyed 
their  orders  without  a  moment's  hesitation.  Thus  was 
this  hideous  monster  crushed  in  its  birth,  however  to 
myself  and  officers  a  most  painful  scene." 

On  the  20th  of  May  Wayne's  corps,  much  smaller 
in  numbers  than  he  had  anticipated,  and  by  no  means 
well  equipped,  but  according  to  his  own  account  re- 
duced to  discipline  and  harmony  by  the  prompt  execu- 
tion of  two  of  the  mutineers,  marched  southward  from 
York.  In  consequence  of  the  attempt  of  Lord  Corn- 
wallis,  who  had  made  a  rapid  march  from  South  Caro- 
lina after  the  battle  of  Eutaw  Springs,  to  form  a  junction 
with  General  Phillips,  who  commanded  the  British  forces 
on  the  James  River  in  Virginia,  Wayne  was  ordered  to 
reinforce  La  Fayette,  who  commanded  in  that  State, 
before  proceeding  to  South  Carolina.  Wayne  joined 
La  Fayette  on  the  7th  of  June  at  Fredericksburg  with 
about  eight  hundred  men.     He  formed  his  men  into 


THE    VIRGINIA    CAMPAIGN  AND    YORK  TOWN,     267 

two  battalions,  the  first  commanded  by  Walter  Stewart 
and  the  other  by  Richard  Butler.  These  battalions 
and  one  from  Virginia  under  Colonel  Gaskin  formed  a 
brigade,  and  acted  together  as  such  under  Wayne  until 
the  surrender  of  Yorktown.  Wayne  brought  with  him 
one  company  of  artillerists,  but  no  cannon.  La  Fayette's 
command  was  made  up  of  detachments  from  the  New 
England  regiments  and  those  of  Jersey  in  Washing- 
ton's army.  There  was  also  a  corps  of  Virginia  militia, 
varying  greatly  in  number  at  different  times,  under 
La  Fayette,  whose  effective  force  was,  previous  to  the 
junction,  not  more  than  twelve  hundred  men. 

Unfortunately,  Wayne  had  been  so  long  detained  in 
Pennsylvania  by  the  difficulty  of  obtaining  supplies  that 
before  his  arrival  in  Virginia  Richmond  had  been  burned 
by  the  predatory  force  under  Phillips  and  Arnold,  while 
the  planters  on  the  shores  of  the  rivers  emptying  into 
the  Chesapeake  are  said  to  have  lost  property  by  their 
depredations  amounting  in  value  to  several  millions  of 
pounds.  The  command  of  the  combined  force  of  the 
enemy  in  Virginia  was  now  held  by  Cornwallis,  who 
manoeuvred  in  such  a  way  as  to  command  the  penin- 
sula between  the  James  and  York  Rivers.  His  head- 
quarters were  at  Portsmouth,  opposite  Norfolk,  which 
he  converted  into  a  fortified  depot  for  the  reception  of 
supplies  from  the  fleet  by  which,  if  necessary,  it  might 
be  protected.  The  object  of  La  Fayette  and  Wayne 
during  the  summer  of  1 781,  when  their  army  formed 
the  only  American  force  in  Virginia,  was  to  check  the 
raids  of  the  English  detachments  sent  into  the  interior 
of  the  country  intent  on  robbery  and  the  destruction  of 
military  stores.     It  was  also  important  to  prevent  the 


268  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

retreat  of  Cornwallis  from  Portsmouth  into  North  Car- 
olina. It  was  essential  to  the  success  of  Washington's 
plan  for  the  campaign  that  Cornwallis' s  army  should  be 
held,  for  the  present  at  least,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Ches- 
apeake, and  until  Washington  with  the  army  from  the 
North  and  the  French  fleet  should  co-operate  in  the 
autumn  to  complete  his  discomfiture  by  blockading  his 
army.  Of  course  the  English  could  not  understand 
the  significance  of  the  movements  which  Washington 
was  making  so  as  to  secure  the  aid  of  another  French 
fleet  which  was  expected  to  arrive  in  the  Chesapeake 
from  the  West  Indies.  He  concealed  his  plans  under 
the  pretext  of  attacking  New  York  with  the  aid  of  the 
French  forces  under  Rochambeau.  By  a  strange  infat- 
uation, Sir  Henry  Clinton  in  New  York  greatly  aided 
Washington's  plan  by  ordering  Cornwallis  to  establish 
himself  at  some  strong  point  at  the  entrance  of  the 
Chesapeake.  La  Fayette  and  Wayne,  who  had  been 
admitted  to  a  partial  knowledge  of  Washington's  plans, 
were  satisfied  in  the  latter  part  of  the  summer  that  if 
they  were  carried  out  Cornwallis  must  surrender. 

After  the  junction  of  La  Fayette  and  Wayne,  they 
followed  the  marauding  army,  which  was  then  oper- 
ating on  the  peninsula  between  the  James  and  York 
Rivers,  avoiding,  of  course,  a  general  engagement,  as 
their  force  was  greatly  inferior  in  numbers,  and  striving 
to  find  an  occasion  on  which  they  could  do  some  ser- 
vice by  attacking  the  British  rear-guard.  This  mode  of 
campaigning  involved  a  great  deal  of  wearisome  march- 
ing and  countermarching  with  much  distress  to  La  Fay- 
ette's men,  and  inflicted,  apparently,  very  little  injury 
on  the  enemy.     It  certainly  had  the  effect,  however,  of 


THE    VIRGINIA    CAMPAIGN  AND    YORKTOWN      269 

confining  hostile  operations  within  a  comparatively  lim- 
ited territory.  On  the  6th  of  July  it  seemed  as  if  the 
long-hoped-for  opportunity  of  attacking  the  enemy  to 
advantage  had  arrived.  Cornwallis,  moving  down  the 
James  River  on  his  way  to  Portsmouth,  sent  a  portion 
of  his  force  across  the  river.  Intelligence  was  brought 
to  La  Fayette  that  the  English  force  was  cut  in  two 
by  a  wide  river,  and  that  consequently  there  was  a 
favorable  chance  of  attacking  its  rear,  which  still  re- 
mained on  the  left  bank  and  north  side  of  the  James. 
La  Fayette  directed  Wayne  to  move  forward  at  once 
and  attack  that  portion  of  the  force  which  had  not  yet 
crossed.  Upon  arriving  at  Green  Spring,  near  the 
enemy,  Wayne  discovered  that  the  intelligence  that  any 
considerable  portion  of  the  army  had  passed  the  river 
was  false.  He  and  La  Fayette,  leading  the  advance, 
in  order  to  make  a  more  complete  reconnoissance  had 
crossed  a  swamp  by  a  causeway  with  a  force  of  about 
eight  hundred  men  before  they  ascertained  that  they 
had  a  large  portion  of  Cornwallis' s  army  in  their  front, 
and  they  soon  found  this  force  formed  in  battle  array. 
La  Fayette  at  once  sent  back  to  the  main  American  army, 
a  distance  of  five  miles,  for  reinforcements,  ordering 
those  left  behind  to  join  them  with  all  speed.  "  Mean- 
time," says  Wayne,  "  the  riflemen  in  the  advance  com- 
menced and  kept  up  a  galling  fire  upon  the  enemy, 
which  continued  until  five  in  the  afternoon,  when  the 
British  began  to  move  forward  in  columns,  upon  which 
Major  Galvan  [a  French  officer  in  the  Continental  ser- 
vice] attacked  them,  and  after  a  spirited  although  un- 
equal contest  retired  upon  our  left.  A  detachment  of 
light  infantry  under  Major  Willis  having  arrived  also 


270  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

commenced  a  severe  fire  upon  the  enemy,  but  it  was 
obliged  to  fall  back.  The  enemy  observing  our  small 
force  began  to  turn  our  flanks, — a  manoeuvre  in  which 
had  they  persevered  they  must  have  inevitably  sur- 
rounded our  advanced  corps  and  taken  position  between 
this  corps  and  the  other  portion  of  the  army,  com- 
posing the  reinforcement  about  to  join  them.  At  this 
crisis  Colonel  Harmar  and  Major  Edwards  with  part  of 
the  2d  and  3d  Penn'a  regiments  under  Colonel  Hump- 
ton,  with  one  field  piece,  having  joined,  it  was  deter- 
mined, among  a  choice  of  difficulties,  to  advance  and 
charge  the  British  line,  although  it  numbered  more 
than  f\vG  times  our  force."  In  other  words,  Wayne, 
perceiving  that  he  was  confronted  by  the  entire  force 
of  the  enemy,  whose  lines  overlapped  and  endangered 
his  flanks,  decided  instantly  that  the  proper  move  to 
make  was  a  vigorous  charge.  A  sudden  retreat  might 
have  ended  in  a  panic.  To  await  the  shock  of  the  ap- 
proaching army  might  be  ruinous.  "  With  the  instinct 
of  a  leader  and  the  courage  of  a  lion,"  says  Professor 
Johnston,  "  he  determined  to  become  the  assailant, — 
to  advance  and  charge/'  Within  seventy  yards  of  the 
enemy,  and  for  fifteen  minutes,  a  sharp  action  took 
place.  All  the  horses  of  the  American  artillery  were 
either  killed  or  disabled.  In  danger  of  being  out- 
flanked all  the  time,  the  Pennsylvania  line  was  steady, 
and  retreated  through  the  woods  and  across  the  swamp 
to  Green  Spring,  where  it  re-formed. 

This  charge  at  Green  Spring  has  always  been  re- 
garded as  the  most  brilliant  example  of  the  character- 
istics of  Wayne's  military  genius.  To  be  sent  as  he 
was  with  a  small  reconnoitring  force  across  a  swamp 


THE    VIRGINIA    CAMPAIGN  AND    YORKTOWN     271 

passable  only  by  a  narrow  causeway,  to  find  himself 
confronted  by  a  force  five  times  as  large  as  his  own, 
and  to  escape  being  surrounded  and  captured,  was  a 
feat  which  required  absolute  presence  of  mind  on  his 
part  and  the  power  of  deciding  in  a  critical  juncture 
what  was  to  be  done  on  the  instant,  as  well  as  perfect 
discipline  in  his  soldiers.  Wayne  seems  to  have  had 
that  military  instinct  which  led  him  to  see  exactly 
what  ought  to  be  done  at  the  particular  moment,  and 
the  courage  to  do  it.  It  was  a  case  in  which  what  ap- 
peared to  be  rashness  was  the  best — indeed,  the  only 
— course  he  could  pursue.  He  had  that  absolute 
confidence  in  the  courage  of  his  troops  which  led  him 
to  undertake  what  seemed  a  very  bold  manoeuvre,  per- 
fectly convinced  that  they  would  follow  wherever  he 
should  lead.  He  was  blamed  by  some  military  critics, 
but  the  weight  of  authority  was  entirely  on  his  side. 
Washington  writes  to  him, — 

"I  with  the  greatest  pleasure  received  the  official 
account  of  the  action  at  Green  Spring.  The  Marquis 
de  La  Fayette  speaks  in  the  handsomest  manner  of 
your  own  behavior  and  that  of  the  troops  in  the  action." 
General  Greene,  his  friend  and  commander,  says,  "  The 
Marquis  gives  you  glory  for  your  late  conduct  in  the 
action  at  Jamestown,  and  I  am  sensible  you  merit  it. 
It  gives  me  great  pleasure  to  hear  of  the  success  of  my 
friends,  but"  (and  he  here  speaks  from  his  own  experi- 
ence) "be  a  little  careful  and  tread  softly,  for,  depend 
upon  it,  you  have  a  modern  Hannibal  to  deal  with  in 
the  person  of  Cornwallis.  Oh  that  I  had  had  you 
with  me  a  few  days  ago !  your  glory  and  the  public 
good  might  have  been  greatly  advanced."      General 


272  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

Wayne  did  not  follow  Greene's  advice  to  tread  "  softly 
on  the  heels  of  Cornwallis,"  who  was  soon  shut  up  in 
Yorktown,  whence  he  "came  out  to  vex  his  enemies 
no  more."  One  of  the  most  enthusiastic  letters  which 
Wayne  received  at  this  time  was  from  Robert  Morris, 
who  paints  in  lively  colors  the  effect  of  so  gallant  an 
action  as  that  of  Wayne  in  strengthening  the  tone  of 
public  feeling.  "  We  have  received,"  he  says,  "  a  full 
report  of  the  action  at  Green  Springs.  It  is  very  flat- 
tering to  find  our  troops  arrived  at  that  degree  of  dis- 
cipline which  enables  them  to  face  with  inferior  numbers 
that  proud  foe  who  have  heretofore  attempted  to  treat 
our  army  with  such  contempt.  It  is  still  more  agreea- 
ble to  find  that  this  handful  of  troops  have  been  led 
to  the  conflict  by  officers  revered  for  their  public  and 
esteemed  for  their  private  conduct  through  life.  I  do 
assure  you,  my  worthy  friend,  that  I  shall  think  my 
present  toils  well  rewarded  when  they  enable  you  and 
your  competitors  for  glory  to  enjoy  the  sweets  while 
you  endure  the  toils  of  a  military  life." 

The  following  is  the  official  report  of  the  action  by 
La  Fayette  to  General  Greene,  8th  of  July,  1781  : 


{From  the  Pennsylvania  Gazette,  July  2j,  1781.) 

Head  Quarters  July  8,  1781 

Sir, — I  have  the  honour  to  enclose  to  your  Excellency  a  copy 
of  my  letter  to  Maj.  General  Greene,  containing  the  proceedings 
of  the  two  armies  since  my  last. 

With  great  respect  &c  &c 

La  Fayette. 
His  Excellency  the 
President  of  Congress 


THE  VIRGINIA  CAMPAIGN  AND  YORKTOWN     273 


Ambler's  Plantation,  opposite  James  River 
July  8,  1 78 1 

Sir, — On  the  4th  instant  the  enemy  evacuated  Williamsburg, 
where  some  stores  fell  into  our  hands,  and  retired  to  this  place, 
under  the  cannon  of  their  shipping.  The  next  morning  we  ad- 
vanced to  Bird's  Tavern,  and  part  of  the  Army  took  post  at  Nor- 
rell's  Mill,  about  nine  miles  from  the  British  Camp. 

The  6th  I  detached  an  advanced  corps  under  General  Wayne,  with 
a  view  of  reconnoitring  the  enemy's  situation.  Their  light  parties 
being  drawn  in,  the  picquets,  which  lay  close  to  their  encampments, 
were  gallantly  attacked  by  some  riflemen,  whose  skill  was  employed 
to  great  effect. 

Having  ascertained  that  Lord  Cornwallis  had  sent  off  his  heavy 
baggage  under  a  proper  escort,  and  posted  his  army  in  an  open  field, 
fortified  by  the  shipping,  I  returned  to  the  detachment  which  I 
found  more  generally  engaged.  A  piece  of  cannon  had  been  at- 
tempted by  the  Vanguard  under  Major  Galvan,  whose  conduct  de- 
serves high  applause.  Upon  this  the  whole  British  Army  came  out 
and  advanced  to  this  wood  occupied  by  General  Wayne.  His  corps 
chiefly  composed  of  Pennsylvanians  and  some  light  infantry,  did 
not  exceed  800  men,  with  three  field  pieces,  but  notwithstanding 
their  numbers,  at  sight  of  the  British  Army  the  troops  ran  to  the 
rencontre;  a  short  skirmish  ensued  with  a  close,  warm,  and  well 
directed  fire ;  but  as  the  enemy's  right  and  left  of  course  greatly  out- 
flanked ours  I  sent  General  Wayne  orders  to  retire  half  a  mile  to 
where  Colonels  Vose  and  Barber's  light  infantry  battalions  had 
arrived  by  a  most  rapid  move,  and  where  I  directed  them  to  form. 
In  this  position  they  remained  till  some  hours  in  the  night.  The 
militia  under  General  Lawson  had  advanced  and  the  continentals 
were  at  Norrell's  mill,  when  the  enemy  retreated  during  the  night  to 
James  island,  which  they  also  evacuated,  crossing  over  to  the  south 
side  of  the  river.  The  ground  at  this  place  and  the  island  was  suf- 
ficiently occupied  by  General  Muhlenburg.  A  number  of  valuable 
horses  were  left  on  their  retreat.  From  every  account  the  enemy's 
loss  has  been  very  great,  and  much  pains  taken  to  conceal  it.  Their 
light  infantry,  the  brigade  of  guards,  and  two  British  regiments 
formed  the  first  line ;  the  remainder  of  their  army  the  second. — 
The  cavalry  were  drawn  up  but  did  not  charge. 

19 


274  MAJOR-GENERAL   WAYNE. 


By  the  enclosed  return  you  will  see  what  part  of  General  Wayne's 
detachment  suffered  most.  The  services  rendered  by  the  officers 
make  me  happy  to  think  that  although  many  were  wounded  we  lost 
none.  Most  of  the  field  officers  had  their  horses  killed  ;  the  same 
accident  to  every  horse  of  two  field  pieces  made  it  impossible  to 
move  them,  unless  men  had  been  sacrificed. 

But  it  is  enough  for  the  glory  of  General  Wayne  and  the  officers 
and  men  he  commanded,  with  a  reconnoitring  party  only  to  have 
attacked  the  whole  British  Army  close  to  their  encampment,  and 
by  this  severe  skirmish  hastened  their  retreat  over  the  river. 

Colonel  Boyer  of  the  riflemen  is  a  prisoner. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be  &c  &c 

La  Fayette. 

Major-General  Greene. 

{From  the  Pennsylvania  Gazette,  August  I,  1781.) 

"  Extract  from  the  Marquis  La  Fayette's  General  orders. 

"Ambler's  Plantation,  opposite  James  River,  July  8,  1781. 

"The  General  is  happy  in  acknowledging  the  spirit  of  the  de- 
tachment commanded  by  General  Wayne  in  their  engagement  with 
the  total  of  the  British  Army,  of  which  he  happened  to  be  an  eye 
witness.  He  requests  General  Wayne,  the  officers  and  men  under 
his  command,  to  receive  [torn]  best  thanks. 

"The  bravery  and  destructive  fire  of  the  riflemen  engaged,  rendered 
essential  service. 

"The  brilliant  conduct  of  Major  Galvan  and  the  Continental  de- 
tachment under  his  command,  entitle  them  to  applause. 

"  The  conduct  of  the  Pennsylvania  field  and  other  officers  are  new 
instances  of  their  gallantry  and  talents.  The  fire  of  the  light  infan- 
try under  Major  Willis  checked  the  enemy's  progress  round  our  right 
flank.  The  General  was  much  pleased  with  the  conduct  of  Captain 
Savage,  of  the  Artillery,  and  it  is  with  pleasure  he  also  observes,  that 
nothing  but  the  loss  of  horses  could  have  produced  that  of  the  two 
field  pieces. — The  zeal  of  Colonel  Mercer's  little  corps  is  hand- 
somely expressed  in  the  number  of  horses  he  had  killed." 

The  following  letters  show  the  care  taken  by  General 
Wayne  of  his  wounded  officers  : 


THE  VIRGINIA  CAMPAIGN  AND  YORKTOWN     275 


Providence  Forge  10th  July  1781 
My  dear  Friends, — Gratitude  Duty  &  Inclination  independent 
of  those  principles  which  ought  to  Inform  every  humane  heart,  leads 
me  to  use  every  possible  exertion  to  render  Gent'n  (who  have  so 
honorably  &  freely  bled  in  the  defence  of  the  Liberties  of  this 
Country)  as  comfortable  as  Circumstances  will  admit  of,  be  assured 
that  nothing  but  the  most  positive  assurance  of  your  being  so  would 
have  prevented  me  from  using  every  exertion  to  have  you  properly 
supplied  &  attended  to 

It  is  but  this  moment  I  was  informed  of  the  inattention  which 
you  have  experienced — &  have  fallen  upon  the  only  means  in  my 
power  to  remedy  it  by  directing  the  Commissioners  of  the  County 
to  supply  you  with  those  Comforts  which  wounded  Officers  are  en- 
titled to,  &  if  the  County  will  not  pay  it  to  place  it  to  my  acct. — 
I  shall  be  happy  to  hear  from  you  often  &  wish  you  to  Command 
my  services  on  every  Occasion 

That  you  may  soon  recover  from  your  wounds  &  restored  to  your 
anxious  friends  is  the  sincere  wish  of  your  most 

Obt  &  very 

Hum  Sert — 

Ant'y  Wayne. 

The  Wounded  Officers  to  General  Wayne. 

Sir, — We  have  ben  Hon'd  with  y'r  kind  inquire  respecting  Our 
health,  and  situation,  generously  ofering  to  Supply  our  wants,  even 
at  your  own  expense —  Altho'  our  accommodations  have  ben  but 
indiferent  owing  to  the  Inhospittality  of  the  people,  and  a  neglect 
in  the  heads  of  the  medical  department  for  this  State — we  did  not 
think  it  concistent  with  the  character  of  soldiers  to  give  uneasiness 
to  a  Gentleman  whos  known  generrosity,  and  Parental  care,  has 
endeared  him  to  evry  officer  and  Soldier  under  his  com'd,  and 
remov'd  evry  doubt  of  his  Indefatigable  assiduity  to  render  their 
Situation  Happy —  We  at  present  have  a  prospect  of  being  Supply'd 
with  evry  thing  necesary  to  render  our  Situation  as  comfortable  as 
the  climate  will  admit  of. 

It  is  the  opinion  of  the  Surgeons  that  a  cooler  Climate  would  be 
more  friendly,  and  tend  to  expedite  the  rejoining  our  commands; 


276  MAJOR-GENERAL   WAYNE. 

Strongly  recommending  our  repairing  to  Penns'a  until  the  heat  of 
the  season  is  over. 

If  such  an  expedient  should  meet  with  your  Approbation,  our 
reliance  must  be  in  you  to  enable  us  to  procead  in  character. 

A  light  waggon  for  the  purpose  of  transporting  our  Baggage, 
and  orders  to  Draw  Forage  would  be  necessary,  whether  we  can 
be  supply'd  with  Horses,  and  Sadies,  without  y'r  Friendly  Aid  is 
uncertain — 

The  Marquis  was  so  good  as  to  send  one  of  his  Aides  to  inquire 
after  our  wants,  we  informed  him  of  our  Difficulty  respecting 
Horses  &c,  he  said  we  should  be  supply'd,  but  we  fear  the  multi- 
plicity of  buisness  has  prevented  his  recollecting  the  promise — 

In  Short,  sir,  our  Dependance  is  on  you,  to  equip  us  for  the  Tour 
to  the  North,  hoping  to  return  in  a  short  time  and  prove  our  selves 
worthy  the  notice  of  that  General  whose  Ambition  is  to  reward  the 
Brave. 

In  the  mean  time  beg  leave  with  evry  Sentiment  of  Esteem,  to 

Subscribe  ourselves 

Sir  y'r 

verry  Humble  Serv'ts 

W.  Finney 

and  Companions 
Hanover  12th  Aug't  1781 

Gen  Wayne 

After  the  engagement  at  Green  Spring  Lord  Corn- 
wallis  retired  to  Portsmouth,  on  the  south  side  of  the 
James,  and  began  to  fortify  himself  there.  La  Fayette, 
fearing  that  further  raids  might  be  made  by  detach- 
ments of  British  troops  into  the  interior  of  the  country 
for  the  destruction  of  military  stores  and  other  prop- 
erty, or  that  Cornwallis  might  decide  to  retire  into 
North  Carolina,  ordered  Wayne  to  cross  the  river  at 
Westover1  and  take  post  at  Cabin  Point,  on  the  road 

*  On  his  leaving  Westover,  then,  as  now,  the  stateliest  of  all  the 
colonial  houses  in  Virginia,  Mrs.  Byrd,  the  widow  of  the  former 


THE  VIRGINIA  CAMPAIGN  AND  YORK  TOWN     277 

between  Norfolk  and  Petersburg,  so  that  any  attempt 
to  retire  on  the  part  of  Cornwallis  might  be  frustrated. 
But  the  days  of  Cornwallis's  raids  and  forays  in  Vir- 
ginia, as  well  as  the  time  for  his  safe  retreat,  were  at 
last  over.  He  had  received  orders  from  Sir  Henry 
Clinton,  about  the  time  that  Wayne  crossed  at  West- 
over,  to  select  the  most  advantageous  post  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Chesapeake  and  fortify  his  position, 
placing  himself  in  ready  communication  with  the  fleet, 
which  was  expected  to  aid  him  in  his  operations.  The 
place  which  he  selected,  in  pursuance  of  these  orders, 
but  contrary  to  his  own  judgment,  which  pointed  to  a 
retreat  into  North  Carolina  as  the  proper  course  to  be 
taken,  was,  as  is  well  known,  Yorktown.  The  cam- 
paign in  Virginia,  from  which  the  English  ministry  had 
hoped  such  great  things,  was  a  disastrous  one,  owing 
to  the  active  and  enterprising  opposition  made  by  La 
Fayette  and  Wayne. 

All  the  interest  in  the  great  drama  which  was  to  ter- 
minate in  the  ignominious  surrender  of  the  troops  they 
had  been  pursuing  during  the  summer  becomes  from 
this  time  concentrated  on  the  siege  of  Yorktown.  Each 
separate  part  of  the  complicated  plan  which  had  been 
arranged  by  Washington  for  the  destruction  of  Corn- 
wallis seemed  to  work  in  wonderful  harmony  with  the 
rest.  All  moved  forward  together  with  the  certainty  of 
an  inexorable  fate.  On  the  25th  of  August  Washing- 
ton crossed  the  Hudson  on  his  march  to  lower  Virginia, 
the  rear  of  his  army  being  reinforced  by  the  French 
troops  under  Rochambeau  lately  stationed  at  Newport. 

proprietor,  wrote  General  Wayne  a  note  thanking  him  for  his  great 
kindness  and  expressing  her  good  wishes. 


278  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE, 

On  the  same  day  De  Barras  sailed  with  the  French 
fleet  from  Newport  for  the  Chesapeake,  carrying  with 
them  the  stores  for  the  troops  and  the  siege-artillery. 
On  the  30th  of  August  De  Grasse  with  another  French 
fleet  coming  from  the  West  Indies,  carrying  three  thou- 
sand troops  under  Saint-Simon,  anchored  safely  in 
Hampton  Roads  before  Admirals  Graves  and  Hood, 
the  English  admirals,  reached  the  Virginia  capes. 
These  troops  were  landed  a  few  days  later  at  Burwell's 
Ferry.1  On  the  same  day  the  fleet  of  De  Barras,  which 
had  also  just  arrived  in  the  Chesapeake,  formed  a 
junction  with  that  of  De  Grasse,  and  the  combined 
fleet  (far  superior  in  the  number  of  ships)  went  to  sea 
in  search  of  the  English  squadron  under  Graves  and 
Hood.  The  French  so  much  damaged  the  English 
fleet  off  the  mouth  of  the  Chesapeake  as  to  insure  its 
non-intervention  during  the  siege  of  Yorktown.  Thus 
it  appears  that  by  a  most  remarkable  coincidence — or 
shall  we  not  say  by  a  wonderful  providential  interpo- 
sition ? — all  Washington's  plans  were  successfully  car- 
ried out,  and  the  larger  portion  of  the  force  which  was 
to  crush  Cornwallis  arrived  within  striking  distance  of 
Yorktown  with  a  precision  hitherto  unknown  in  mili- 
tary history.  During  these  five  days  while  events  were 
hastening  to  a  crisis,  La  Fayette  received  from  Wash- 
ington a  confidential  communication  telling  him  of  the 
proposed   combined  action  of   his  own  army  and  its 

x"Went  down  with  Stewart  and  saw  the  landing  of  the  French 
troops  on  James  Island.  Mortifying  and  surprising  sight  to  two 
British  flag  ships  that  lay  at  this  place  who  never  heard  the  least 
whisper  of  this  great  event  until  the  troops  and  vessels  were  among 
them." — Richard  Butler's  Diary,  September  2,  178 1. 


THE  VIRGINIA  CAMPAIGN  AND  YORK  TOWN     279 

French  allies  with  the  French  fleet  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Chesapeake.  This  was  all  that  was  needed  to  induce 
La  Fayette  to  take  every  precaution  to  oppose  with 
his  own  troops  and  those  of  Wayne  any  attempt  on 
the  part  of  Cornwallis  to  escape  into  North  Carolina. 
They  awaited  with  anxious  impatience  the  arrival  of 
Washington  and  Rochambeau. 

Before  the  arrival  of  Rochambeau  General  Wayne 
wrote  as  follows  to  Robert  Morris : 

Williamsburg  14th  Sept.  1781. 

The  arrival  of  the  Count  De  Grasse  with  a  large  fleet  of  Men  of 
War  &c  must  have  been  announced  in  Phil'a  long  before  this  will 
reach  you;  I  wish  that  the  State  of  our  Magazines  &c  had  been 
such  as  to  enable  us  to  Improve  the  moment  of  his  Arrival,  but  it 
was  not  nor  is  not  even  at  this  moment. 

I  don't  know  how  it  is,  but  I  have  not  felt  so  sanguine  on  the 
Occasion — as  the  naval  &  land  force  sent  us  by  our  good  &  great  ally- 
would  justify — probably  it  is  Occasioned  by  our  former  disappoint- 
ments when  matters  bore  a  flattering  appearance. 

Do  you  know  notwithstanding  all  this  that  I  have  been  extremely 
uneasy  lest  the  Appearance  of  a  British  fleet  off  this  Cape  should 
Induce  the  Count  to  follow  them  too  far  &  leave  an  Opening  for  the 
British  to  enter — to  his  exclusion.  Admiral  Hood  with  8  (?)  sail  of 
the  Line  last  Wednesday  week  made  His  appearance.  The  Count 
De  Grasse  with  22  Sail  weighed  anchor  14  of  which  Engaged  Hood — 
the  Other  could  not  get  up  in  time.  4  Sail  of  the  Line  were  left  to 
defend  the  entrance  of  the  Cheseapeake. 

The  British  admiral  fled  too  soon  for  anything  but  an  act  of 
Choice — may  he  not  wish  to  draw  De  Grasse  towards  New  York  & 
expose  the  French  fleet  to  the  Effects  of  the  Equinoctial  Storm, 
whilst  the  british  lay  snug  in  harbour —  The  Count  D'Estaing 
was  taken  in  by  Lord  Howe — this  time  three  years  ago — partly  in 
the  same  manner — but  it  cannot — it  must  not  be  the  case  now. 

Unless  fortune  is  uncommonly  unkind  Lord  Cornwallis  &  his 
Army  must  submit  to  the  Combined  force  of  France  &  America,  his 
numbers  are  more  than  is  Generally  given  out,  we  shall  find  them 


280  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

very  little  short  of  7000,  taking  in  the  Marines  there  are  at  least 
6000  Combatants  officers  included  exclusive  of  negroes — so  that 
During  the  Absence  of  the  Count  De  Grasse,  who  has  a  large  body 
of  marines  on  board  Destined  to  act  with  us — 

The  french  troops  are  the  finest  &  best  made  body  of  men  I  ever 
beheld — their  Officers  and  Gen'l  &  I  will  be  answerable  for  their 
being  soldiers,  we  have  the  highest  Opinion  of  their  Discipline  & 
can  not  doubt  their  prowess — (?) 

[To  Robt.  Morris,  Esqr.]  l 

On  the  2d  of  September  an  unfortunate  accident  hap- 
pened to  Wayne  which  very  nearly  deprived  him  of 
the  glory  of  participating  in  the  siege  of  Yorktovvn. 
He  had  occasion  one  evening  to  visit  the  camp  of  La 
Fayette,  when  one  of  the  sentries  mistaking  him  for  an 
enemy  fired  his  musket  and  wounded  the  general  in  the 
fleshy  part  of  the  leg.  But  no  wound  could  check  his 
ardor  or  his  enterprise  on  the  eve  of  the  great  events 
which  he  knew  were  about  to  transpire.  He  writes  to 
Mr.  Peters  on  the  12th  of  September  "that  if  powder 
enough  had  been  put  into  the  cartridge,  the  ball  which 
grazed  the  bone  would  have  gone  through  his  leg." 
He  tells  him  that  "this  caitiff"  (a  favorite  expletive 
with  him)  "  disorder  is  now  leaving  me,  and  I  shall  in  a 
few  days  take  an  active  and  interesting  command  in 
despite  of  the  ball,  and  hope  to  participate  in  the  glory 
attending  the  capture  of  Lord  Cornwallis  and  his  ma- 
rauding army."  It  is  interesting  to  notice,  by  the  way, 
the  expression  of  the  good  feeling  of  the  officers  called 
out  by  this  misfortune  of  their  general.     In  his  private 

1  There  seem  to  be  some  omissions  in  this  rough  draught  of  the 
letter  sent  to  Mr.  Morris,  but  it  is  so  characteristic  that  it  has  been 
thought  best  to  print  it  without  any  attempt  to  supply  the  omissions. 


THE  VIRGINIA  CAMPAIGN  AND  YORKTOIVN.     281 

diary  bold  Richard  Butler,  who  had  so  often  been 
Wayne's  chosen  comrade  in  deadliest  peril,  writes, 
"The  wound  is  mortifying-  to  this  good  officer,  and  to 
the  troops  he  commands,  who  love  him,  and  wish  his 
presence  with  them  in  the  field  on  all  occasions. " 

Wayne  and  his  colonels  seem  to  have  been  the  first 
American  officers  to  welcome  the  French  troops  under 
M.  de  Saint-Mame,  brought  by  the  fleet  of  the  Comte  de 
Grasse,  and  to  aid  them  in  selecting  a  suitable  place  for 
an  encampment  near  Williamsburg.  They  seem  to  have 
been  very  soon  on  pleasant  terms  with  the  strangers. 

On  the  26th  of  September  Washington's  army,  with 
the  French  auxiliaries  under  Rochambeau,  reached  Wil- 
liamsburg. Washington  was  received  with  the  high- 
est honors  by  the  newly-arrived  French  troops,  and 
they  and  the  Americans  soon  became  very  effusive 
in  the  expression  of  their  joy  that  they  were  engaged 
in  a  common  enterprise  under  such  a  general,  which 
promised  to  be  so  successful  and  to  produce  such 
brilliant  results.  The  officers  of  each  army  vied  in 
their  efforts  to  entertain  worthily  those  of  the  other. 
Butler  speaks  in  his  diary  of  one  of  these  entertain- 
ments, where  an  elegant  band  of  music  played  "  an  in- 
troductive  part"  of  a  French  opera,  "  signifying  the 
happiness  of  the  family  when  blessed  with  the  presence 
of  the  father," — a  singular  mixture  of  sentiment  with 
warlike  surroundings.1 

1  The  opera  referred  to  is  probably  the  once  famous  opera  of 
"Lucille,"  by  Gretry,  at  that  time  very  popular  in  Paris.  It  con- 
tained the  well-known  song, — 

"  Oil  a-t-on  plus  de  bonheur 
Qu'au  sein  de  sa  famille,"  etc. 


282  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

There  was  nothing  specially  noteworthy  in  the  part 
taken  by  the  Pennsylvania  line  under  Wayne  at  York- 
town.  His  two  battalions,  containing  about  seven 
hundred  men,  were  brigaded  as  heretofore  with  Col- 
onel Gaskin's  Virginia  battalion,  and  formed  part  of 
the  division  under  Von  Steuben.  The  third  battalion 
of  Pennsylvanians,  under  Colonel  Craig,  arrived  too 
late  to  take  part  in  the  siege,  and  so  did  General  St. 
Clair.  The  storming  and  capture  of  the  two  redoubts, 
the  only  operation  attended  with  serious  danger,  was 
not  assigned  to  the  Pennsylvania  line,  but  two  of  its 
battalions  supported  the  attack.  The  truth  is,  the  su- 
periority of  the  allies  in  numbers,  and  the  skill  with 
which  they  made  use  of  their  siege-artillery,  made  the 
surrender  of  Cornwallis  as  certain  as  any  event  in  war 
could  be.  On  the  17th  of  October  the  enemy  beat  the 
chamade  at  ten  o'clock.  Negotiations  for  the  surrender 
immediately  followed,  and  on  the  19th  the  garrison  be- 
came prisoners  of  war,  and  Cornwallis's  army  was  no 
more.1 

The  news  of  the  capitulation  was  received  with  un- 
bounded joy  all  through  the  country ;  but  it  seemed  to 
be  the  signal,  as  victories  in  the  past  had  been,  not  for 
renewed  efforts,  but  for  a  relaxation  of  the  vigor  and 
energy  with  which  the  war  had  been  prosecuted.     As 

1  To  show  the  strange  course  which  the  amenities  of  civilized 
warfare  take,  we  insert  a  note  of  Lord  Cornwallis  to  General  Wayne 
declining  the  latter's  invitation  to  dinner : 

"  Lord  Cornwallis  presents  his  compliments  to  General  Wayne, 
and  is  sorry  he  cannot  have  the  pleasure  of  waiting  upon  him  to-mor- 
row, being  engaged  to  dine  with  the  Count  Saint  Maime. 

"Nov.  1st." 


THE  VIRGINIA  CAMPAIGN  AND  YORKTOWN     283 

after  Saratoga  and  after  Monmouth,  many  believed  that 
peace  was  not  only  well  assured,  but  that  it  was  nigh 
at  hand ;  a  most  fatal  delusion,  which  added  to  the  cost 
of  our  independence  many  lives  and  much  treasure.  It 
is  worth  while  to  reproduce  here  a  letter  from  General 
Wayne,  one  from  Colonel  Walter  Stewart,  and  another 
from  his  trusty  chaplain,  Rev.  David  Jones,  explaining 
the  condition  of  feeling  in  Congress  and  the  Assembly 
of  Pennsylvania  after  the  surrender  of  Yorktown. 

General  Wayne  to  Robert  Morris. 

York,  26th  Octr.  1781 

The  surrender  of  Lord  Cornwallis  with  his  Fleet  &  Army  must 
have  been  announced  in  your  city  before  this  period 

It  is  an  event  of  the  utmost  consequence  &  if  properly  Improved 
may  be  productive  of  a  Glorious  &  happy  peace ;  but  if  we  suffer 
that  unworthy  torpor  &  supineness  to  seize  us,  which  but  too  much 
pervaded  the  Councils  of  America  after  the  Surrender  of  Gen'l  Bur- 
goyne,  we  may  yet  experience  great  Difficulties, — for  believe  me  it 
was  not  to  the  exertions  of  America,  that  we  owe  the  Reduction  of 
this  modern  Hannibal,  nor  shall  we  always  have  it  in  our  power  to 
Command  the  aid  of  37  sail  of  the  Line  &  8000  Auxiliary  veterans — 
Our  allies  have  learned,  that  on  this  Occasion,  our  regular  troops 
were  not  more  than  equal  to  one  half  their  Land  force :  and  altho' 
our  prowess  was  such  as  to  establish  our  Character  as  Soldiers — our 
means  &  numbers  were  far  inadequate  to  the  Idea  they  had  formed 
of  American  resources 

Yet  the  Resources  of  this  Country  are  great  &  if  Councils  will 
call  them  forth  we  may  produce  a  Conviction  to  the  World  that  we 
deserve  to  be  free — for  my  own  part,  I  am  such  an  Enthusiast  for  In- 
dependence, that  I  would  hesitate  to  enter  heaven  thro'  the  means 
of  a  secondary  cause  unless  I  had  made  the  utmost  exertions  to  merit  it. 

The  Pennsylvanians  with  some  other  troops  have  another  field  of 
glory  in  view — if  successful  you'l  soon  hear  from  us,  till  when  & 
ever  believe  me  yours 

Most  Sincerely 

Ant'y  Wayne. 


284  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

I  dare  not  commit  myself  to  paper — I  wish  you  could  take  a 
prospective  view  of  us  for  a  few  moments,  you  then  would  better 
understand  me. 

[To  Rob't  Morris,  Esq.] 

Colonel  Stewart  to  General  Wayne. 

Philad'a  Dec.  24,  1781 

My  Dear  General, —  ...  As  you  dreaded,  our  chimney  corner 
soldiers  in  this  place  immediately  on  the  capture  of  Cornwallis  took 
up  the  opinion  that  the  war  was  at  an  end.  Congress  were  full  of 
the  idea  of  reduction,  but  this  Gen'l  Washington  put  a  stop  to  ex- 
cept in  the  General  officers.  The  number  necessary  for  the  army  he 
is  to  mention,  and  Gen'l  Lincoln  our  Secretary  at  War  is  to  nomi- 
nate those  who  remain.  I  have  not  yet  heard  the  number  mentioned, 
nor  the  mode  by  which  Lincoln  will  proceed  to  retain  them  in  the 
service.  He  must  I  think  do  it  agreeable  to  their  rank  as  he  will 
hardly  attempt  to  leave  out  Superior  and  keep  in  inferior  officers. 
Those  who  retire  go  on  half-pay  for  life,  but  I  am  much  afraid  it 
will  be  very  hard  to  come  at. 

Morris  has  no  prospect  of  paying  the  Army  nor  do  I  believe  that 
it  will  be  in  his  power  for  a  long  time —  All  those  officers  who  held 
Brevet  Commissions  and  were  not  attached  to  any  line  have  their 
accounts  settled  and  one  fifth  of  their  pay  given  them  ;  the  rest  they 
fund  with  Mr.  Morris  at  six  per  cent.  All  the  French  engineers 
who  were  at  York  in  the  service  of  America  have  got  a  step  in  rank. 
Portail  is  a  Major-General,  Gouvion  a  Colonel  &c —  Knox  is  try- 
ing hard  for  the  Major  General's  commission,  and  is  backed  by  the 
General.  'Tis  at  present  doubtful,  but  you  know  our  "  grand  body" 
cannot  withstand  regular  approaches,  and  perseverance,  both  of 
which  I  am  of  opinion  will  be  used  in  the  present  case.  Indeed  as 
they  have  broke  through  all  rules  in  the  present  appointments,  I 
think  they  ought  and  will  attend  to  Knox,  whose  merits  are  Equal 
to  any  of  the  newly  promoted. 

Our  Legislature  have  done  nothing.  Their  whole  session  has 
been  employed  in  the  investigation  of  the  election  which  I  am  told 
will  prove  a  villainous  one  and  will  criminate  in  a  high  degree  Gen- 
eral Lacey.  They  have  now  adjourned  until  February  and  God 
knows  what  they  will  do  on  their  meeting. 


THE  VIRGINIA  CAMPAIGN  AND  YORKTOWN     285 

Philad'a  is  not  as  agreeable  this  winter  as  it  has  been,  &  I  am 
sorry  to  tell  you  our  cloth  is  not  as  much  attended  to  as  they  were 
formerly.  Be  assured,  the  Army  is  the  place  for  sociability,  friend- 
ship, and  happiness.  You  need  not  expect  to  see  any  recruits 
shortly  from  this  State  as  there  are  no  measures  whatever  pursuing 
to  raise  them. 

Yours  sincerely 

Walter  Stewart. 

Chaplain  Jones  to  General  Wayne. 

Philad'a  Dec  28,  1781 
Dear  General, — It  would  take  a  large  volume  to  give  you  a 
sketch  of  our  public  matters  in  the  State  of  Penn'a,  in  short,  noth- 
ing is  done  by  our  civil  officers  that  answer  any  good  purpose  for  the 
Army —  Our  taxes  are  insupportable,  and  all  seems  likely  to  be  con- 
sumed in  support  of  civil  government.  The  old  adage  is  true,  "  Out 
of  sight  out  of  mind."  I  know  not  when  you  will  receive  any 
thing,  the  Financier  says,  as  I  am  informed.  All  the  money  lately 
borrowed  from  France  will  be  little  enough  to  pay  the  contractors 
for  the  Army —  None  can  be  spared  for  the  pay  of  the  Army — 
This  should  be  collected  by  taxes,  but  alas !  hard  money  is  heavy, 
not  to  be  drawn  from  the  Treasury —  What  is  lamentable  is  that 
our  civil  officers  receive  their  pay,  but  no  period  is  fixed  to  pay  the 
Army.  To-day  the  Assembly  rise,  and  I  believe  they  have  done 
little  more  than  quarrel  about  the  election.  I  know  not  when  it 
will  be  in  my  power  to  return,  as  I  can  get  no  money.  Mrs.  Wayne 
spent  Wednesday  evening  at  my  house  she  is  hearty.  ...  I  have  no 
pleasure  in  Penn'a  at  present.  In  the  Army  there  is  some  Virtue 
still— 

David  Jones — 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

THE    GEORGIA    CAMPAIGN. 

On  the  ist  of  November  a  detachment  consisting 
of  Colonel  Butler's,  Colonel  Walter  Stewart's,  and 
Colonel  Craig's  battalions  of  the  Pennsylvania  line 
and  Colonel  Gist's  Maryland  battalion,  was  ordered 
to  leave  Williamsburg  and  reinforce  General  Greene's 
army  in  South  Carolina.  These  troops  were  com- 
manded by  Wayne  as  brigadier-  and  St.  Clair  as  major- 
general.  On  the  4th  of  January,  1782,  this  detach- 
ment joined  General  Greene  at  Round  O  in  South 
Carolina.  Passing  by  General  St.  Clair,  Greene  sent 
Wayne  into  Georgia  with  a  very  small  force  with  gen- 
eral instructions  to  re-establish  as  far  as  might  be  pos- 
sible the  authority  of  the  United  States  within  that 
State.  To  understand  fully  Wayne's  position  and 
operations  in  the  campaign  that  followed,  some  ex- 
planation of  the  condition  of  affairs  at  that  time  in 
Georgia  is  needed. 

The  people  of  that  State  were  then  utterly  demoral- 
ized and  impoverished  by  the  partisan  warfare  which 
had  been  so  long  waged  within  its  limits.  The  peculiar 
distress  of  the  inhabitants  was  due  quite  as  much  to 
the  bitter,  malignant  hatred  subsisting  between  the 
Whigs  and  Tories  of  the  State,  with  both  of  whom  the 
cruel  custom  of  putting  people  to  death  after  surren- 
der prevailed,  as  to  the  operations  of  the  British  army. 
286 


THE    GEORGIA    CAMPAIGN.  287 

The  population  was  sparse  and  scattered,  and  no  set- 
tled law  was  recognized  or  obeyed.  Taxes  could  not 
be  collected,  and  the  poverty  of  the  State  was  such 
that  the  Legislature  in  1782  passed  a  law  authorizing 
the  governor  to  seize  upon  the  first  ten  negroes  he 
could  find,  sell  them,  and  appropriate  the  proceeds  to 
the  payment  of  his  salary.  Yet  this  was  the  same  Legis- 
lature that  was  so  penetrated  with  gratitude  for  the 
services  of  General  Wayne  in  rescuing  the  State  from 
the  enemy,  and  in  restoring  peace,  law,  and  order,  that 
they  voted  thirty-nine  hundred  guineas  for  the  purchase 
of  the  confiscated  rice-plantation  of  Sir  James  Wright, 
the  last  royal  governor  of  the  colony,  to  be  presented 
to  General  Wayne  in  the  name  of  the  people  of 
Georgia. 

Wayne  began  his  campaign  by  recommending  to  the 
governor  (Martin),  in  accordance  with  General  Greene's 
instructions,  that  he  should  issue  a  proclamation  offer- 
ing pardon  and  protection  to  those  Tories  of  the  State 
who  had  been  aiding  the  British  and  oppressing  their 
neighbors,  on  condition  that  they  would  make  their  sub- 
mission by  a  certain  date.  This  proclamation,  as  it  an- 
nounced the  policy  to  be  pursued  towards  the  adherents 
of  the  royal  government  in  the  event  of  the  success 
of  the  American  arms,  doubtless  helped  to  weaken 
the  force  of  the  enemy  in  the  interior.  In  the  mean 
time  active  preparations  were  made  by  Wayne  for  a 
campaign  which  should  subdue  all  active  resistance. 

Wayne's  force  in  Georgia  consisted  of  about  one 
hundred  of  Moylan's  dragoons,  a  detachment  of  field 
artillery,  a  body  of  three  hundred  mounted  men  from 
Sumter's  brigade,  under  Colonel  Hampton,  Jackson's 


288  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

and  McCoy's  volunteers,  amounting  to  one  hundred 
and  seventy  men,  and  such  of  the  militia  as  the  gov- 
ernor of  Georgia  could  induce  to  take  the  field.  For 
the  first  time  during  the  Revolutionary  struggle  Wayne 
was  separated  from  his  long-tried  and  well-trained  com- 
rades of  the  Pennsylvania  line,  who  were  retained  in 
South  Carolina  by  General  Greene.  He  felt  their  loss 
sorely,  as  he  tells  the  general,  "  Pray  give  me  an  ad- 
ditional number  of  Penn'a  troops.  I  will  be  content 
with  one  battalion  of  Pennsylvanians.  They  can  bring 
on  their  own  field  equipage  without  breaking  in  upon 
any  part  of  the  Army.  I  will  candidly  acknowledge 
that  I  have  extraordinary  confidence  and  attachment  in 
the  officers  and  men  who  have  fought  and  bled  with 
me  during  so  many  campaigns.  Therefore  if  they  can 
be  spared  you  will  much  oblige  me."  With  the  paltry 
force  at  his  disposal  (raw  and  inexperienced  troops  for 
the  most  part)  he  was  expected  to  subdue  not  only  the 
English  garrison  at  Savannah,  composed  of  thirteen 
hundred  regulars,  five  hundred  militia,  an  indefinite 
number  of  refugees,  and  the  Indians  their  allies,  Creeks 
and  Cherokees.  Savannah,  however,  was  the  only 
post  which  was  garrisoned  by  any  considerable  force  of 
the  enemy.  To  isolate  this  garrison  from  the  rest  of 
the  State,  and  particularly  from  its  Indian  allies  in  the 
interior,  was  Wayne's  first  object. 

He  took  post  at  Ebenezer,  twenty-five  miles  above 
Savannah,  on  the  river.  He  drew  a  line  from  this 
point  to  the  Ogeechee,  intending  to  cut  off  the  gar- 
rison from  its  supplies  as  well  as  from  aid  from  the 
hostile  Indians.  His  force  was  too  small  effectually 
to  guard  this  line,  and  General  Clarke,  the  commandant 


THE    GEORGIA    CAMPAIGN.  289 

at  Savannah,  attempted  to  destroy  by  fire  all  the  food 
for  man  and  beast  to  be  found  within  the  circle,  and 
thus  force  Wayne  to  abandon  his  position.  Wayne  suc- 
ceeded, however,  not  merely  in  preventing  a  junction 
between  the  English  and  the  Creek  Indians  outside, 
but  also  in  defeating  each  party  in  detail  as  it  attacked 
him. 

Thus,  on  the  19th  of  February,  1782,  he  decoyed  by 
stratagem  a  large  party  of  Indians  coming  from  the 
interior  within  his  power,  and,  after  taking  from  them  a 
considerable  amount  of  the  provisions  which  they  were 
carrying  to  Savannah,  sent  them  back  to  tell  their  own 
tribesmen  that  Savannah  would  certainly  be  captured 
by  the  Americans,  and  that  the  best  policy  for  the 
Indians  would  be  to  remain  neutral.  A  considerable 
force  from  the  Savannah  garrison  came  out  to  support 
the  Indians ;  but,  finding  that  they  were  too  late,  they 
retired.  So,  again,  on  the  21st  of  May,  the  garrison, 
under  Colonel  Brown,  made  a  sortie  in  considerable 
numbers.  To  repel  them  Wayne  was  obliged  to  march 
at  night  more  than  four  miles  over  a  narrow  causeway 
crossing  a  swamp  to  reach  the  enemy's  camp.  But  he 
felt,  as  he  characteristically  says,  "that  the  success  of 
a  night  attack  depends  more  on  the  prowess  of  the 
men  than  their  numbers," — one  of  his  war  maxims,  by 
the  way,  on  which  he  constantly  acted.  His  vanguard 
charged  with  the  utmost  impetuosity  the  English  force, 
and  the  result  was  the  defeat  and  dispersion  of  Colonel 
Brown's  party,  consisting  of  a  large  body  of  cavalry 
and  a  detachment  of  regular  infantry  and  of  Indians. 

He  gives  the  following  account  of  the  difficulties  and 
hardships  of  this  short  campaign : 


290  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

"  It  is  now  upwards  of  five  weeks  since  we  entered 
this  State,  and  during-  that  period  not  an  officer  or  sol- 
dier with  me  has  undressed  for  the  purpose  of  changing 
his  linen ;  nor  do  the  enemy  lay  on  beds  of  down. 

"  The  duty  done  by  us  in  Georgia  was  more  difficult 
than  that  imposed  upon  the  children  of  Israel.  They 
had  only  to  make  bricks  without  straw,  but  we  have 
had  provisions,  forage,  and  almost  every  other  apparatus 
of  war  to  procure  without  money ;  boats,  bridges,  &c. 
to  build  without  materials  except  those  taken  from 
the  stumps,  and  what  was  more  difficult  than  all,  to 
make  Whigs  out  of  Tories.  But  this  we  have  effected 
and  have  wrested  the  country  out  of  the  hands  of  the 
enemy  with  the  exception  only  of  the  town  of  Sa- 
vannah." 

On  the  24th  of  May  some  of  the  more  violent  of  the 
Creek  Indians  coming  from  a  great  distance  in  the  in- 
terior, who  had  not  listened  to  the  advice  which  he  had 
sent  them  to  remain  neutral,  made  an  attempt  to  sur- 
prise Wayne's  camp  at  Sharon,  within  a  short  distance 
from  the  enemy's  lines.  These  Indians  were  led  by 
Guristersijo,  the  principal  warrior  of  the  Creeks,  and 
attacked  Wayne's  camp  suddenly  with  great  fierceness 
on  the  night  of  the  24th.  Wayne's  troops  recoiled  for 
a  few  minutes,  and  lost  some  of  their  guns,  but  they 
soon  rallied  and  advanced  to  the  charge,  supported  by 
Colonel  Posey  and  Major  Finley,  who  attacked  them  on 
the  right  flank  with  such  irresistible  vigor  that  the  sav- 
ages were  totally  routed  and  driven  into  the  swamp 
and  their  chief,  Guristersijo,  was  slain.  This,  like  the 
other  attacks  on  Wayne's  force,  was  a  combined  action 
on  the  part  of  the  English  and  the  Indians.     As  soon 


THE    GEORGIA    CAMPAIGN.  291 

as  it  was  daylight  the  British  made  their  appearance, 
but  they  were  soon  driven  back  into  the  lines  of  Sa- 
vannah by  a  vigorous  assault.  "  Our  trophies,"  says 
Wayne,  "are  an  elegant  standard,  107  horses  with  a 
number  of  packs,  arms,  &c.  and  more  horses  are  hourly 
secured  and  brought  in.  Such  was  the  determined 
bravery  with  which  the  Indians  fought  that  after  I  had 
cut  down  one  of  their  chiefs,  with  his  last  breath  he 
drew  his  trigger  and  shot  my  noble  horse  dead  under 
me. 

The  result  of  these  battles  decided  the  fate  of  Georgia. 
It  is  true  that  the  British  Ministry,  after  the  vote  of  the 
House  of  Commons  denouncing  a  continuance  of  the 
war,  in  February,  1782,  regarded  the  question  of  aban- 
doning Savannah  and  Charleston  as  one  of  time  only, 
yet  neither  place  was  given  up  until  the  commanders 
were  forced  to  do  so  by  the  success  of  the  military 
operations  of  the  Americans.  Savannah  was  evacuated 
on  the  nth  of  July,  and  Charleston  in  December  of 
that  year,  and  Wayne  was  at  the  head  of  the  forces 
which  took  possession  of  both  places. 

The  campaign  of  Wayne  in  Georgia  was  the  only 
one  which  had  been  completely  under  his  own  superin- 
tendence and  direction.  It  was  regarded  on  all  hands, 
at  that  time,  not  merely  as  most  brilliant  in  its  results, 
but  as  exhibiting  generalship  and  military  skill  in  a 
wonderful  degree.  He  was  no  longer  spoken  of  as 
"  Mad  Anthony/'  for  his  achievements  made  him  worthy 
to  rank  as  a  strategist  with  Turenne  or  the  Duke  of 
Marlborough.  That  such  a  small  force  as  his,  made 
up  for  the  most  part  of  raw  and  inexperienced  volun- 
teers, interposed  between  the  garrison  at  Savannah  and 


*92  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

its  allies  the  warlike  Creeks  and  Cherokees,  should  so 
manoeuvre  as  to  defeat  each  of  these  hostile  bodies  in 
turn  while  they  were  attempting  to  support  each  other, 
three  times  in  three  months,  and  compel  at  last  the 
evacuation  of  Savannah,  the  stronghold  of  the  enemy 
in  Georgia,  was  regarded  by  every  one  as  due  to  the 
inspiration  of  a  military  genius  of  the  very  highest 
order.  Nowhere  was  Wayne  a  greater  hero  than 
among  the  people  whom  he  had  rescued  from  insup- 
portable anarchy  in  so  short  a  time.  Georgia  showed 
her  gratitude,  as  we  have  said,  by  giving  out  of  her 
poverty  thirty-nine  hundred  guineas  to  purchase  an 
estate  for  her  deliverer.  The  contrast  between  this 
treatment  and  that  of  Pennsylvania  of  her  illustrious 
son  is  thus  characteristically  spoken  of  by  Wayne's  old 
friend  and  comrade  Richard  Butler:  "It  gives  great 
satisfaction  to  the  generous  souls  among  your  friends 
here  to  think  that  the  people  of  more  Southern  climes 
have  paid  some  deference  to  your  merits,  and  have 
demonstrated  it  in  a  more  solid  manner  than  empty 
poor  praise.  This  is  an  article  of  no  more  worth  here 
than  the  Continental  currency.,, 

The  British  army  having  evacuated  Savannah,  Wayne 
was  ordered  by  General  Greene  to  return  with  his  force 
to  South  Carolina  to  aid  in  the  reduction  of  Charleston. 
He  left  Georgia  in  August,  1782,  bearing  with  him 
kind  wishes  from  the  grateful  hearts  of  its  inhabitants, 
and  an  expression  of  the  great  esteem  in  which  his 
military  qualities  and  his  kind  and  considerate  treat- 
ment of  the  troops  under  his  command  were  held  by 
all  the  officers  of  the  auxiliary  force  which  had  served 
with  him.     He  was  also  much  gratified  at  the  conclu- 


THE   GEORGIA    CAMPAIGN.  293 

sion  of  his  labors  by  the  receipt  of  a  letter  from  General 
Greene  in  which  the  latter  thus  expresses  his  apprecia- 
tion of  the  value  of  his  services  during  the  campaign. 
He  had  at  all  times  the  support  and  sympathy  of  his 
commander. 

General  Greene  to  General  Wayne — Extract. 

Head  Quarters 
Ashley  River  July  14,  1782 

Dear  Sir, — I  am  very  happy  to  hear  that  the  enemy  have  left 
Savannah,  and  congratulate  you  most  heartily  on  the  event.  I  have 
forwarded  an  account  thereof  to  Congress  and  the  Commander  in 
chief  expressive  of  your  singular  merit  &  exertions  during  your  com- 
mand and  doubt  not  that  it  will  merit  their  entire  approbation  as  it 
does  mine. 

There  was,  indeed,  no  dissenting  voice  in  any  quarter 
either  as  to  the  brilliant  results  of  the  campaign  or  as 
to  the  skill  and  bravery  with  which  it  had  been  con- 
ducted by  Wayne.  He  had,  truth  to  say,  just  then 
much  need  of  sympathy  and  encouragement.  The 
war  was  over,  and  with  it  was  gone,  as  he  felt,  all 
opportunity  of  gaining  further  distinction  as  a  sol- 
dier. Almost  immediately  after  his  retirement  to  South 
Carolina  he  was  attacked  by  a  form  of  fever  which  has 
always  proved  dangerous  to  unacclimated  whites  on 
that  low  coast.  During  the  three  autumnal  months  the 
ranks  of  his  little  army  were  fearfully  thinned  by  this 
plague,  and  he  himself  was  so  utterly  prostrated  by  the 
disease  that,  although  he  recovered  his  health  measura- 
bly, he  never  afterwards  regained  his  full  strength  and 
vigor.  As  soon  as  he  was  able  to  take  the  field  he  ap- 
plied for  active  service.  In  the  beginning  of  December 
the  light  infantry  of  the  army  and  the  legionary  corps 


294  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

formerly  commanded  by  Colonel  Harry  Lee  were  added 
to  his  force  by  General  Greene.  The  number  of  Penn- 
sylvania troops  serving  in  South  Carolina  was  so  re- 
duced by  disease  and  by  casualties  of  all  kinds  that 
those  who  survived  were  consolidated  into  one  battalion. 
All  that  were  left  were  about  six  hundred  men  who 
had  enlisted  for  the  war,  and  one  hundred  and  fifty 
eighteen-months  men.  At  this  time  (December,  1782) 
Richard  Butler,  who  was  in  charge  of  the  recruiting 
depots  in  Pennsylvania,  wrote  to  General  Wayne  that 
in  these  depots  there  were  more  than  eighteen  hundred 
enlisted  men  for  the  infantry,  besides  a  considerable 
number  of  men  engaged  for  the  cavalry  and  the  artillery. 
But  they  were  not  sent  on,  the  State  authorities  de- 
clining to  do  so  under  the  fatal  delusion  which  had  so 
often  misled  them,  that  their  services  would  not  be 
needed,  and  therefore  that  it  would  be  useless  to  incur 
any  further  expense  in  preparing  them  for  the  field. 
No  more  men  were  engaged,  and  those  who  had  been 
recruited  were  not  paid. 

During  the  winter  General  Wayne  was  engaged  in 
negotiating  a  treaty  of  peace  with  the  Creeks  and 
Cherokee  Indians  at  Augusta,  which  completed  his 
work  of  the  pacification  of  Georgia. 

In  October,  1783,  he  was  appointed  by  Congress 
major-general  by  brevet  on  the  recommendation  of  the 
Executive  Council  of  Pennsylvania.  It  is  not  a  little 
singular  that  a  man  recognized  on  all  hands  as  one  of 
the  most  skilful  and  successful  officers  of  the  army,  one 
who  had  performed  for  several  years  most  satisfactorily 
the  duties  of  a  major-general,  should  have  gone  through 
the  war  with  the  rank  of  brigadier-general  only.     It  is 


THE   GEORGIA    CAMPAIGN.  295 

due  to  the  State  authorities  of  Pennsylvania  to  say  that 
this  apparent  neglect  was  caused  by  no  want  of  effort 
on  their  part  to  force  a  recognition  of  his  merits  upon 
Congress.  Indeed,  it  can  hardly  be  said  that  the  blame 
should  rest  on  that  body  for  not  according  him  the  rank 
to  which  his  great  services  seemed  to  entitle  him.  The 
difficulty  arose  from  the  vicious  system  of  promotion 
which  had  been  adopted  by  Congress  early  in  the  war 
in  order  to  avoid  exciting  jealousy  on  the  part  of  the 
States  which  furnished  most  men  for  the  army.  The 
rule  was  that  the  generals  should  be  assigned  to  each 
State  in  proportion  to  the  number  of  men  it  sent  into 
the  field.  Pennsylvania  had  two  major-generals  very 
early  in  the  war, — Mifflin  and  St.  Clair.  It  is  true  that 
her  troops  garrisoning  Fort  Pitt,  Sunbury,  and  Fort 
Stanwix  were  in  number  large  enough  to  form  an- 
other brigade,  as  has  been  said,  and  to  entitle  Wayne, 
who  was  the  senior  brigadier,  to  promotion ;  yet  Con- 
gress persistently  ignored  the  claim  of  Wayne  on  such 
grounds,  and  at  last  was  forced  to  make  him  a  major- 
general  by  brevet,  in  consideration  of  the  extraordinary 
value  of  his  services. 

Of  this  half-hearted  and  hesitating  recognition  of  his 
services  Wayne  seems  never  to  have  complained.  It 
was  not  his  way.  He  and  his  comrades  seem  to  have 
been  much  more  affected  by  the  unkind  and  ungen- 
erous suspicions  which  were  expressed  by  selfish  and 
unscrupulous  politicians  concerning  the  motives  and 
intentions  of  those  who  had  established  the  Society  of 
the  Cincinnati. 

Few  things  are  more  discreditable  in  the  history  of 
the  Revolution  than  the  aspersion  of  the  character  of 


296  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

those  who  had  brought  about  the  triumphant  result, 
because  they  saw  fit  at  the  close  of  the  war  to  establish 
a  fraternal  association  among  the  survivors  to  aid  each 
other  in  time  of  need,  and  to  keep  alive  in  their  children 
the  memory  of  their  heroic  deeds.  The  sorrow  and 
indignation  with  which  two  of  the  most  distinguished 
veterans  of  that  war  regarded  this  attempt  to  heap 
odium  on  them  are  aptly  expressed  in  the  following 
letters  of  General  William  Irvine  and  General  Wayne : 

General  Irvine  to  General  Wayne. 

Carlisle  April  28,  1784 
Dear  General, — The  Society  of  the  Cincinnati  is  now  bandied 
about  in  this  quarter,  and  held  up  as  a  growing  evil  of  vast  impor- 
tance— in  short  as  the  fore-runner  of  the  entire  loss  of  liberty.  For 
this  purpose  and  to  favor  the  Constitution  Mr.  Burk's  performance 
is  sent  from  Philadelphia  to  all  true  friends  in  the  State,  and  propa- 
gated as  a  warning  to  rouse  jealousy  &  enrage  the  populace  against 
the  members.  I  was  informed  yesterday  that  a  scheme  is  on  foot  if 
the  election  can  be  carried,  to  disfranchise  every  member  of  the 
Society  as  a  preparation  ;  in  case  they  have  spirit  to  resent — to  drive 
every  soul  out  of  the  State.  How  true  this  is  I  will  not  venture  to 
say,  but  sure  I  am  that  there  is  base  ingratitude  enough  interwoven 
in  the  constitution  of  a  majority  of  the  multitude  to  prompt  them 
to  greater  Villainy  than  can  well  be  imagined,  and  it  is  too  melan- 
choly a  fact  that  there  are  not  a  few  of  their  leaders  of  similar  dis- 
positions, and  the  bulk  of  the  people  have  acquired  the  extreme 
liberty  they  now  enjoy  on  too  easy  terms  to  feel  the  real  use  or  bene- 
fit of  peace,  and  instead  of  gratitude  to  those  who  have  not  only 
done  the  business,  but  are  almost  the  only  sufferers,  look  upon  them 
as  nuisances  which  must  at  all  events  be  removed  out  of  the  way. 

General  Wayne  to  General  Irvine. 

Way nesbo rough,  18  May  1784 
Dear  General, — The  revolution  of  America  is  an  event  that  will 
fill  the  brightest  page  of  history  to  the  end  of  time.     The  conduct 


THE   GEORGIA    CAMPAIGN.  297 

of  her  officers  and  soldiers  will  be  handed  down  to  the  latest  ages  as 
a  model  of  virtue  perseverance  &  bravery.  The  smallness  of  their 
numbers,  and  the  unparalleled  hardships  &  excess  of  difficulties 
that  they  have  encountered  in  the  defense  of  this  country  from  her 
coldest  to  her  hottest  sun,  places  them  in  a  point  of  view  hurtful  to 
the  eyes  of  the  leaders  of  faction  &  party,  who  possess  neither  the 
virtue  nor  the  fortitude  to  meet  the  enemy  in  the  field,  and  seeing 
the  involuntary  deference  yet  paid  by  the  bulk  of  the  people  to 
the  gentlemen  of  the  army, — envy,  that  green-eyed  monster,  will 
stimulate  them  to  seize  with  avidity  every  opportunity  (or  rather 
pretext)  to  depreciate  the  merits  of  those  who  have  filled  the  breach, 
and  bled  at  every  pore.  Nor  is  Caitiff  ingratitude  the  growth  of  any 
particular  country  or  climate.  The  Republics  of  Greece  &  Rome 
furnish  precedents  innumerable  for  them  to  go  upon,  and  the  order 
of  the  Cincinnati  was  a  favorable  opening  for  them  to  enter,  which 
with  the  sophistical  &  labored  performance  of  an  angry  &  disap- 
pointed man  has  served  as  a  baneful  medicine  to  poison  the  minds  of 
the  people  &  prejudice  them  against  us. 

General  Wayne  was  elected  president  of  the  Georgia 
State  Society  of  the  Cincinnati  July  5,  1790. 

In  June,  1783,  the  soldiers  of  the  army  received  six 
months'  furlough,  and  in  December  following  they  were 
discharged,  as  a  definitive  treaty  of  peace  had  in  the 
mean  time  been  agreed  upon.  The  soldiers  in  the 
Pennsylvania  line  received  for  the  three  months'  pay 
due  them  notes  of  the  nominal  value  of  twenty  shillings, 
but  worth,  really,  but  two  shillings  to  the  pound.  Some 
recruits  at  the  depot  at  Lancaster,  indignant  at  their 
dishonest  treatment,  came  in  a  body  to  Philadelphia  as 
soon  as  they  received  their  furlough,  to  demand  justice, 
or  what  was  equivalent  to  it,  their  just  dues.  So  far  as 
appears,  there  never  was  any  attempt  on  the  part  of 
these  men  to  overawe  Congress  by  force.  They  used 
no  threats  of  violence,  but  they  insisted,  as  was  right 


298  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

and  natural,  that  the  contract  made  with  them  should 
be  observed.  Some  members  of  Congress  became 
alarmed,  frightened  possibly,  and  that  body  agreed  to 
adjourn  to  Princeton,  alleging  that  their  liberty  was 
restrained  by  a  mob  in  Philadelphia.  Had  there  been 
any  real  cause  of  alarm,  the  means  of  quelling  any  dis- 
turbance were  at  hand.  President  Dickinson  (the  gov- 
ernor of  the  State),  it  is  true,  did  not  call  out  the  militia, 
because  it  was  apparent  that  as  between  Congress 
and  the  soldiers  the  multitude  earnestly  supported  the 
rightful  claims  of  the  latter,  and,  besides,  the  people  of 
Philadelphia  had  seen  too  much  of  the  members  of 
Congress  during  the  many  years  it  held  its  sessions  in 
their  city  to  feel  any  exalted  respect  for  the  dignity  of 
that  body.  Had  an  overt  act  been  committed  by  the 
discharged  recruits  (or  so-called  soldiers)  there  would 
have  been  no  difficulty  in  checking  them.  It  so  hap- 
pened that  the  first  two  companies  of  Wayne's  veterans 
had  just  arrived  from  South  Carolina,  and  were  quar- 
tered in  the  city  barracks  pending  their  discharge.  As 
soon  as  the  alarm  was  given,  these  two  companies  fell 
in  to  a  man  and  marched  to  the  President's  house  and 
reported  to  the  general  in  command.1  Doubtless  had 
their  assistance  been  required  either  to  protect  Con- 
gress from  coercion  or  to  guard  the  money  belonging 
to  the  government  which  was  supposed  to  have  been 
deposited  in  the  bank,  they  would  soon  have  made 
short  work  of  the  Lancaster  recruits. 

The  prospect  that  the  soldiers  on  their  discharge 
would  be  left  in  a  pitiable  condition  of  want  and  suffer- 

x  Denny's  Journal,  p.  257. 


THE   GEORGIA    CAMPAIGN.  299 

ing  excited  the  sympathy  of  all  those  who  had  profited 
by  their  labors.  Wayne  seems  to  have  been  impressed 
with  the  necessity  of  making  (so  far  as  it  was  in  the 
power  of  the  State  to  do  so)  their  return  to  civil  life 
easy  and  natural. 

On  the  20th  of  April,  1783,  he  writes  to  President 
Dickinson  of  Pennsylvania, — 

"You  are  pleased  to  ask  my  advice  on  any  thing 
respecting  the  troops  under  my  command  belonging  to 
your  State  ...  I  fondly  flatter  myself  that  the  wisdom 
&  justice  of  the  Executive  and  Legislative  bodies  of 
Penn'a  will  remove  every  bar,  &  open  wide  the  door 
of  welcome  and  receive  her  returning  soldiery  with 
open  arms  and  grateful  hearts,  and  I  cannot  entertain 
a  doubt  that  they  on  their  part  will  cheerfully  &  con- 
tentedly resume  the  garb  and  the  habits  of  the  citizen." 

How  these  hopes  were  fulfilled  we  discover  when  we 
find  that  the  soldiers  when  they  were  disbanded  were 
offered  about  one-tenth  of  what  was  due  them  (two 
shillings  or  two  shillings  and  sixpence  in  real  value  for 
twenty  that  was  due)  in  full  of  all  demands. 


CHAPTER    IX. 

WAYNE    IN    CIVIL   LIFE. 

In  the  month  of  July,  1783,  General  Wayne,  after 
having  seen  the  last  of  the  Pehnsylvania  troops  em- 
barked at  Charleston  for  Philadelphia,  returned  to  his 
native  State  shattered  and  enfeebled  by  the  fever  from 
which  he  had  suffered.  From  this  cause  he  was  unable 
to  take  part  in  the  final  ceremonies  which  attended 
General  Washington's  farewell  to  the  army  at  New 
York.  He  was  also  too  ill  to  attend  the  commander- 
in-chief  as  he  passed  through  Philadelphia  on  his  way 
to  Mount  Vernon. 

In  anticipation  of  his  return,  Dr.  Rush  wrote  him  in 
September,  1782,  a  most  kind  letter,  full  of  generous 
appreciation  of  his  services,  and  telling  him  with  what 
honors  he  would  be  welcomed  on  his  return  to  his  native 
State  by  his  friends. 

Dr.  Rush  to  General  Wayne. 

Philad'a  16  Sep  1782 
My  Dear  Sir, — The  evacuation  of  Savannah  tho'  a  voluntary 
act  of  the  enemy  was  attended  with  circumstances  that  have  given 
you  credit  among  your  friends.  Penn'a  loves  you.  You  are  one 
of  her  legitimate  children.  Let  nothing  tempt  you  to  abandon  her. 
The  strangers  and  the  vagabonds  who  have  destroyed  her  gov't  can 
only  be  deposed  by  a  union  of  the  native  and  ancient  citizens. 
There  are  honors  in  store  for  you  here — Chester  county  claims  you. 
Come,  my  friend,  and  sit  down  with  the  companions  of  your  youth 
300 


WAYNE  IN  CIVIL  LIFE.  301" 

under  the  shade  of  trees  planted  with  your  own  hand.1  Come  and 
let  the  name  of  Wayne  descend  to  posterity  in  your  native  State. 
If  your  descendants  act  as  you  have  done  it  cannot  fail  of  being 
respected  while  the  sun  shines  &  the  rivers  flow — 

The  exertions  of  the  enemy  for  some  time  past  have  been  greatly 
upon  the  ocean.  This  City  has  lost  at  a  moderate  computation 
^800,000  by  captures  since  the  first  of  January.  The  spirit  of  the 
ministry,  it  is  true,  is  changed  but  the  profits  of  the  war  are  so  im- 
mense in  New  York  to  Digby  &  his  officers,  that  we  can  expect  no 
mitigation  of  our  losses  at  sea,  until  the  sound  of  peace  reaches  the 
last  British  cruiser  on  our  coast. 

******** 

Benj.  Rush. 

General  Wayne  to  Dr.  Rush. 

Charlestown  Dec.  24  1782 

Dear  Sir, — Want  of  health  &  not  inclination  prevented  my  ac- 
knowledging your  obliging  favor  of  the  16th  of  Sept'r.  On  the 
second  of  that  month  I  was  seized  with  a  violent  fever,  nor  have  I 
from  that  period  to  this  hour  enjoyed  one  day's  health.  Frequent 
emetics  &  constant  application  of  the  Peruvian  bark.  I  have  this 
consolation  that  neither  idleness  nor  dissipation  has  so  injuriously 
affected  my  constitution,  but  that  it  has  been  broken  down  and 
nearly  exhausted  by  encountering  almost  every  excess  of  fatigue  diffi- 
culty and  danger  in  the  defence  of  the  rights  &  liberty  of  America 
from  the  frozen  lakes  of  Canada  to  the  burning  sands  of  Florida. 

I  feel  the  lively  force  of  friendship  with  which  you  so  anxiously 
solicit  my  return  to  my  native  State,  which  I  shall  eventually  do, 
not  influenced  by  the  fascinating  idea  of  the  honors  you  say  await 
me  (for  they  have  lost  their  power  to  please)  but  from  a  fixed  deter- 
mination to  revisit  my  Sabine  field  where  I  yet  hope  to  pass  many 
happy  hours  in  domestic  felicity  with  a  few  of  our  friends  unfettered 
by  any  public  employ  &  consequently  unenvied.  Until  then  & 
ever  believe  me  with  true  affection  &  esteem, 

Yours  &c 

Anth'y  Wayne. 

1  There  was  at  this  time  a  rumor  that  it  was  General  Wayne's 
intention  to  take  up  his  residence  in  Georgia. 


3o2  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

In  the  Constitution  of  Pennsylvania  adopted  in  1776 
there  was  a  provision  peculiar  to  that  State,  creating  a 
body  to  be  called  the  Council  of  Censors.  It  was  to 
meet  every  seven  years,  and  two  censors  were  to  be 
elected  in  each  county.  They  had  no  legislative  power, 
but  their  duty  was  to  inquire  whether  the  Constitution 
had  since  their  last  meeting  been  preserved  inviolate, 
whether  the  taxes  levied  had  been  duly  collected,  and 
whether  the  laws  of  the  State  generally  had  been  exe- 
cuted. This  body  had  the  power,  in  case  it  found  that 
there  had  been  any  violation  or  neglect  of  the  provi- 
sions of  the  Constitution  or  laws  by  the  other  branches 
of  the  government,  to  pass  censure  upon  the  offending 
party,  and  to  recommend  to  the  Assembly  the  repeal  of 
all  such  laws  as  might  appear  to  have  been  enacted 
contrary  to  the  Constitution,  and,  two-thirds  consenting, 
a  revision  of  that  instrument  by  a  convention. 

Wayne  was  elected  a  member  of  the  Council  of 
Censors  in  1 783,  and  consequently  held  that  position 
immediately  after  the  conclusion  of  the  war.  It  will  be 
readily  understood  that  to  perform  the  functions  de- 
volved upon  it  at  such  a  time,  which  was  nothing  less 
than  the  substitution  of  legislation  proper  for  a  time  of 
peace  for  that  which  had  prevailed  during  the  war, 
called  for  statesmanlike  skill  and  prudence  of  no  ordi- 
nary kind.  General  Wayne  was  evidently  an  active 
spirit  in  the  Council  of  Censors  while  he  held  office. 
He  maintained  upon  many  questions  which  came  before 
it  very  pronounced  ideas.  He  was  chairman  of  the 
committee  appointed  to  ascertain  how  far  the  provisions 
of  the  Constitution  had  been  carried  out  by  legislation, 
and  how  far  and  in  what  way,  if  at  all,  they  had  been 


WAYNE  IN  CIVIL  LIFE.  303 

violated.  The  report  of  this  committee  is  interesting. 
It  treats  of  measures  of  conciliation  and  how  far  they 
should  be  adopted  now  that  peace  was  restored,  and 
recommends  that  a  course  should  be  taken  to  make  the 
transition  easy  from  a  state  of  revolution  to  a  normal 
condition.  The  committee  report  that  many  of  the 
provisions  of  the  Constitution  had  been  violated  by  the 
laws  passed  by  the  Assembly  during  the  seven  preced- 
ing years,  and  there  their  action  seems  to  have  ended. 
The  great  measure  recommended  is  a  revision  of  the 
Constitution.  The  committee  say  (January,  1784),  in 
regard  to  this  revision  of  the  Constitution,  "  It  is  well 
known  how  in  times  of  danger  the  Constitution  (of 
1776)  forsook  us,  and  the  will  of  our  rulers  became  the 
only  law.  It  is  well  known  likewise,  that  a  great  part  of 
the  citizens  of  Pennsylvania  from  a  perfect  conviction 
that  political  liberty  could  never  long  exist  under  such 
a  frame  of  government  were  opposed  to  the  establish- 
ment of  it,  and  when  they  did  submit  to  it,  a  solemn 
engagement  was  entered  into  by  its  then  friends  that 
after  seven  years  should  be  expired,  and  the  enemy 
driven  from  our  coasts,  they  would  concur  with  them  in 
making  the  wished  for  amendments.  The  minority  in 
the  Council  is  said  not  to  represent  more  than  one 
third  of  the  inhabitants,  yet  the  Constitution  can  not  be 
amended  because  two  thirds  of  the  members  of  the 
Council  can  not  be  found  to  approve  it." 

General  Wayne  having  retired  from  the  Council  of 
Censors  was  elected  a  member  of  Assembly  from 
Chester  County  in  the  years  1784  and  1785.  While 
there  he  displayed  his  usual  activity,  and  lent  the  in- 
fluence of  his  great  name  to  aid  the  adoption  of  meas- 


304  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

ures  of  justice  and  humanity,  exhibiting  the  same  broad 
and  liberal  spirit  regarding  the  provisions  of  the  revo- 
lutionary code  as  that  by  which  he  had  distinguished 
himself  in  the  Council  of  Censors.  His  great  desire 
was  to  make  the  Revolution  in  its  results  an  actual 
blessing,  both  to  those  who  had  been  hostile  and  to 
those  who  had  been  neutral  while  the  war  lasted. 

To  accomplish  this  object  it  was  necessary  that  the 
laws  passed  in  1777  and  in  1778  disfranchising  forever 
as  suspected  Tories  and  Loyalists  nearly  one-half  of  the 
population  of  the  State  in  number,  and  much  more 
than  one-half  if  reckoned  by  their  wealth  and  taxable 
property,  should  be  repealed.  By  these  acts  it  had 
been  provided  that  no  resident  of  the  State  should 
ever  be  permitted  to  vote  for  any  officer  of  the  govern- 
ment, or  be  chosen  himself  to  any  office,  unless  before 
the  1st  of  November,  1779,  he  had  taken  the  oath — or 
test,  as  it  was  called — prescribed  by  law,  by  which  he 
renounced  his  allegiance  to  the  King  of  Great  Britain, 
and  declared  his  fidelity  to  the  State  of  Pennsylvania. 
Many  besides  Loyalists,  or  adherents  to  the  English 
crown,  had  refused  or  neglected  to  take  this  test.  The 
Quakers  were,  of  course,  opposed  to  all  political  tests. 
Neutrals,  non-resistants  from  a  variety  of  causes,  as 
well  as  those  who  from  conscientious  scruples  were 
opposed  to  war  (although  after  it  was  over  most  of 
them  were  well  affected  to  the  State),  were  included 
among  the  non-jurors,  the  taxation  of  whose  property 
had  greatly  aided  during  the  war  to  support  the  Amer- 
ican cause.  The  object,  of  course,  of  this  harsh  legis- 
lation was  to  keep  the  control  of  the  Revolution  in  the 
hands  of  its  friends  as  long  as  possible.     While  the  war 


WAYNE  IN  CIVIL  LIFE.  305 

lasted,  such  a  precaution  might,  perhaps,  be  regarded 
as  necessary  ;  but  peace  once  declared,  such  measures 
became,  in  the  opinion  of  General  Wayne,  not  only 
arbitrary  but  highly  impolitic.  At  no  time,  it  seems 
to  me,  in  his  whole  career  did  Wayne's  true  greatness 
of  soul  and  magnanimous  spirit  appear  more  conspicu- 
ously than  in  his  unceasing  efforts  to  rid  Pennsylvania 
of  these  odious  laws.  No  one  could  doubt  that  he  had 
done  more  than  any  inhabitant  of  the  State  by  his  mili- 
tary services  from  the  beginning  to  the  end  of  the  war  in 
support  of  the  cause  of  the  Revolution.  No  one  could 
doubt  that  that  Revolution  was  irrevocable ;  hence  his 
voice,  pleading  until  it  forced  people  to  listen  to  him 
for  a  more  generous  treatment  of  those  who  during  the 
war  had  clung  to  the  old  order  and  thereby  had  become 
disfranchised,  became  in  the  end  most  powerful  in  over- 
coming the  bitter  prejudices  of  the  successful  party. 

As  little  seems  to  be  now  known  of  the  violence  of 
the  measures  of  proscription  adopted  in  Pennsylvania 
during  the  Revolution  and  continued  in  force  many 
years  after  the  close  of  the  war,  a  slight  sketch  of  some 
of  the  more  important  of  them  may  not  be  out  of  place. 

By  the  act  of  June  13,  1777,  it  was  provided  that  all 
the  male  white  inhabitants  of  the  State  above  the  age 
of  eighteen  years  should,  within  a  short  time,  limited 
by  the  act,  take  an  oath  of  allegiance  to  the  State,  and 
forswear  allegiance  to  the  crown.  On  the  1st  of  Octo- 
ber, 1778,  this  test  was  renewed  and  the  following  oath 
prescribed  : 

"  I,  A.  B.,  do  solemnly  and  sincerely  declare  and  swear  or  affirm 
that  the  State  of  Pennsylvania  is  and  of  right  ought  to  be  a  free  sov- 
ereign and  independent  State,  and  I  do  forever  renounce  and  refuse 

21 


3o6  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

all  allegiance  subjection  and  obedience  to  the  King  or  Crown  of  Great 
Britain.  And  I  do  further  swear  that  I  never  have  since  the  Decla- 
ration of  Independence,  directly  or  indirectly,  aided,  assisted,  abetted 
or  in  any  wise  countenanced  the  King  of  Great  Britain,  his  generals, 
fleets  or  armies  or  their  adherents  in  their  claims  upon  these  United 
States,  and  that  I  have,  ever  since  the  Declaration  of  the  Inde- 
pendence thereof,  demeaned  myself  as  a  faithful  citizen  and  subject 
of  this  or  some  one  of  the  United  States,  and  that  I  will  at  all  times 
maintain  and  support  the  freedom  and  sovereignty  and  independence 
thereof." 

By  the  act  of  1779  all  persons  who  had  not  taken  the 
test  required  by  the  act  of  1777  were  directed  to  take 
the  oath  of  allegiance  prescribed  in  the  act  of  1778 
within  a  limited  time.  Those  who  refused  or  neglected 
to  do  so  were  rendered  incapable  of  electing  or  being 
elected  or  holding  any  office  or  place  within  the  govern- 
ment, serving  on  juries,  or  keeping  schools,  except  in 
private  houses ;  and  after  the  time  specified  for  taking 
such  test,  if  they  had  not  taken  it  they  were  forever 
excluded  from  taking  the  said  oath  or  affirmation,  and 
were  deprived  of  the  privileges  of  the  citizens  who  com- 
plied with  the  provisions  of  said  act. 

Such  were  the  test  acts  in  force  during  the  war.  They 
and  the  accompanying  confiscation  acts  were  enforced 
with  merciless  severity.  In  March,  1784,  a  petition  was 
presented  to  the  Assembly  asking  that  these  "  tests" 
should  be  abolished.  It  was  laid  upon  the  table,  and 
a  resolution  providing  that  a  committee  should  be  ap- 
pointed to  revise  the  laws  imposing  these  tests  was 
rejected,  five  members  only  voting  in  its  favor.  In 
September  of  the  same  year  petitions  were  presented 
stating  that  a  large  number  of  young  men  had  attained 
the  age  of  eighteen  years  since  the  test  was  established, 


WAYNE  IN  CIVIL  LIFE.  307 

and  asking  that  the  law  might  be  relaxed  in  their  favor. 
This  was  also  rejected.  Then,  again,  a  proposition  was 
made  in  December  of  that  year  by  General  Wayne  and 
his  friends  in  the  form  of  the  following  resolution : 

"  Whereas,  The  Assembly  is  about  to  impose  a  tax  for  paying  the 
interest  on  the  State  debt,  and  whereas  it  appears  that  a  great  portion 
of  the  inhabitants  are  disfranchised  by  Acts  of  Assembly  founded 
on  causes  which  no  longer  exist,  therefore,  in  order  to  render  this 
tax  perfectly  agreeable  to  the  8th  &  17th  Sections  of  the  Consti- 
tution as  well  as  to  favor  the  more  general  circulation  &  credit  of 
the  paper  money  to  be  emitted, 

"  Resolved,  That  a  Committee  be  appointed  to  bring  in  a  Bill  re- 
vising the  Test  Laws  and  admitting  all  persons  as  Citizens  who  have 
not  been  active  or  criminal  in  opposition  to  the  liberties  of  the  State." 

This  was  also  rejected.  It  was  then  proposed  that 
all  those  who  had  not  taken  the  oath  required  by  the 
act  of  1777  might  enjoy  the  privileges  of  a  citizen  if 
they  would  now  take  the  test  required  by  the  act  of 
1778.  This  proposition  was  adopted,  twenty-nine  yeas 
to  twenty-two  nays. 

This  result  caused  great  popular  excitement,  the  fear 
being  that  at  last  the  claims  of  the  nonjurors  were  to 
be  recognized.  On  the  28th  of  September  the  Assembly 
was  evenly  divided  upon  a  proposition,  to  revise  the 
Test  Laws,  showing  how  much  time  had  done  to  soften 
the  asperities  of  party.  The  Speaker  voting  in  the 
affirmative,  some  of  the  members  opposed  to  the  re- 
vision, nineteen  in  number,  arose,  and  left  the  Assembly 
in  great  confusion,  without  a  quorum.  Addresses  were 
published  by  both  sides,  and  the  excitement  was  kept 
up  to  fever  heat. 

The  contest  was  renewed  in  the  Assembly  at  the  next 
session,  when  General  Wayne,  upon  a  consideration  of 


3o8  MAJOR-GENERAL   WAYNE, 

petitions  from  the  non-jurors  for  the  repeal  of  these 
laws,  insisted  upon  their  repeal,  using  the  well-worn 
arguments  in  favor  of  his  views,  and  especially  that  the 
necessity  of  continuing  such  laws  on  the  statute-book 
was  done  away  with  by  the  peace,  and  that  nearly  one- 
half  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  State  were  deprived  by 
them  of  the  privileges  of  citizens. 

These  resolutions  of  Wayne  were  voted  down  in 
December,  1 784,  by  a  vote  of  fourteen  yeas  to  thirty- 
nine  nays,  and  the  report  of  a  committee  affirming  that 
"  it  would  be  impolitic  and  dangerous  to  admit  persons 
who  had  been  inimical  to  the  sovereignty  and  inde- 
pendence of  the  State  to  have  a  common  participation 
in  the  government  so  soon  after  the  war,"  was  adopted 
by  a  vote  of  forty-two  to  fifteen.  The  struggle  continued 
with  little  intermission  until  1789,  when  the  contest  be- 
tween the  non-jurors  and  what  may  be  called  the  Revo- 
lutionary party  in  the  State  (although  many  of  the  most 
active  Whigs  had  long  favored  the  abolition  of  tests) 
reached  a  conclusion  in  March  of  that  year.  A  motion 
was  adopted  at  that  time  in  the  Assembly  to  "  repeal  all 
laws  requiring  any  oath  or  affirmation  of  allegiance  from 
the  inhabitants  of  the  State."  Thus  this  strange  quarrel 
ended.  It  had  at  least  one  good  effect.  It  cured  for- 
ever the  people  of  Pennsylvania  of  intolerance  of  this 
kind.  Wayne  had  fought  many  times  in  the  Revolution 
against  desperate  odds  with  a  more  rapid  success  than 
in  this  battle  against  the  obstinate  but  honest  prejudices 
of  his  misguided  friends  and  fellow-countrymen. 

Wayne  was  a  member  of  the  Convention  called  in 
Pennsylvania  in  1787  to  decide  upon  the  ratification  of 
the  Constitution  of  the  United  States.     He  was,  as  may 


WAYNE  IN  CIVIL  LIFE,  309 

be  supposed,  one  of  the  most  active  and  ardent  cham- 
pions of  its  adoption,  as  he  well  may  have  been,  for  no 
one  had  suffered  more  in  his  own  person  from  many  of 
the  evils  which  this  Constitution  proposed  to  remedy. 

During  these  conflicts  in  the  Assembly  General 
Wayne  was  endeavoring  to  cultivate  to  the  best  ad- 
vantage his  paternal  estate  in  Pennsylvania  and  his 
rice-plantation  in  Georgia.  When  he  entered  upon 
the  military  service  his  farm  and  tannery  in  Chester 
County  were  necessarily  placed  in  the  hands  of  agents, 
and  Wayne  estimated,  as  we  have  seen,  his  loss  from 
a  want  of  personal  supervision  of  his  estate  during  the 
war  at  seven  thousand  pounds. 

His  estate  in  Georgia,  which  had  been  presented  to 
him  by  the  State,  was  a  rice-plantation  of  nearly  eight 
hundred  and  thirty  acres,  capable  of  producing  large 
crops  if  its  owner  could  have  procured  a  sufficient 
number  of  laborers  to  cultivate  it.  These  laborers, 
according  to  the  practice  of  that  day  in  Georgia,  must 
have  been  necessarily  slaves,  and  Wayne  had  not  the 
means  needed  to  purchase  them.  He  had  not  the 
money  himself,  nor  could  he  at  that  time  secure  either 
in  Georgia  or  in  Philadelphia  the  very  considerable  sum 
required  for  the  purpose.  Some  one  in  Philadelphia 
(probably  his  friend  Robert  Morris)  suggested  that  he 
should  negotiate  a  loan  for  that  purpose  in  Holland. 
In  a  letter  dated  October  22,  1784,  to  Mr.  Van  Berkle, 
the  Minister  Resident  of  Holland  in  this  country,  he 
sets  forth  the  object  of  the  loan  and  the  nature  of  the 
security  which  he  offered  for  its  repayment.  The  letter 
is  interesting  as  showing  the  value  of  the  estate  which 
had  been  given  him  by  Georgia. 


3io  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

Philadelphia  22nd  Oct'r  1784 

Sir, — When  I  had  the  honor  of  presenting  the  Opinion  of  Mess'rs 
Wilcocks  &  Lewis  (two  of  our  most  eminent  Counselors  learned  in 
the  law)  respecting  the  title  of  Waynes  borough  together  with  the 
Draught  &  Valuation  thereof  before  Chief  Justice  McKean  I  in- 
formed your  Excellency  that  I  wished  to  give  that  Estate  as  Security 
for  the  money  that  might  be  lent  upon  it  in  Holland  &  to  make  re- 
mittance from  time  to  time  for  the  Interest  &'cs  in  rice  from  my 
Plantation  situate  upon  the  river  Savannah  in  the  State  of  Georgia 
which  Estate  was  granted  and  confirmed  to  me  in  fee  simple  by  the 
General  Assembly  of  that  State  in  consideration  of  the  Services  ren- 
dered them  when  Commanding  Officer  in  that  Department  in  1782. 
This  Estate  used  to  net  Sr  James  Wright  from  800  to  1000  Barrels 
of  rice,  or  from  between  2400  &  3000  Guineas  pr  Annum — it  is 
therefore  an  Object  of  considerable  consequence  to  me  to  set  to 
work  again  the  soonest  possible,  for  which  purpose  I  shall  proceed 
for  that  Quarter  in  the  course  of  a  few  weeks,  in  order  to  prepare  it 
for  a  Crop  in  the  Spring,  but  shall  want  the  aid  of  about  Four 
thousand  guineas  to  stock  it  with  Negroes. 

I  will  punctually  pay  the  Interest  by  annually  remiting  rice  to 
Amsterdam,  together  with  the  principal  in  the  course  of  two  or 
three  years  if  wanted. 

I  should  have  offered  that  Estate  as  Security  on  Mortgage  in 
preference  to  Waynesborough  but  was  unacquainted  with  the  laws 
of  Georgia  as  to  Aliens.  The  Security  by  the  Laws  of  Pennsyl- 
vania is  as  Valid  &  Certain  as  to  a  Citizen. 

May  I  therefore  take  the  Liberty  of  requesting  your  Excellency  to 
do  me  the  particular  favor  of  writing  to  the  Gentlemen  in  Amster- 
dam (a  Copy  of  whose  letter  upon  money  matters  you  have  already 
perused)  &  should  I  be  fortunate  enough  to  succeed  in  the  Loan 
you  will  add  to  the  many  Obligations  already  conferred  upon 

Your  Most  Obt 

&  very  Hum  Ser't 

His  Excell'y  Ant'y  Wayne 

P.  I.  Van  Berkle 

Minister  of  the  United  Netherlands 
to 

The  United  States  of  America — 


WAYNE  IN  CIVIL  LIFE.  311 

A  year  later  he  received  a  letter  from  Mr.  Morris, 
telling  him  that  the  prospect  of  negotiating  a  loan  of 
four  thousand  guineas  in  Holland  was  not  as  favorable 
as  had  been  anticipated,  but  he  still  thought  that  Gen- 
eral Wayne  might  obtain  the  money  in  that  country  in 
the  course  of  the  summer.  What  a  strange  commen- 
tary all  this  is  on  the  poverty  of  our  people  at  that 
time,  and  of  the  low  state  of  our  credit  abroad !  Neither 
here  nor  in  Europe,  it  seems,  could  four  thousand 
guineas  be  borrowed  on  such  security  as  Wayne  had 
to  offer,  including  a  mortgage  upon  his  Chester  County 
farm. 

The  general  was,  unfortunately,  too  sanguine  of  the 
success  of  his  negotiations  with  the  Holland  bankers, 
and,  supposing  the  loan  concluded,  drew  bills  for  the 
amount  on  his  correspondents.  These  bills  were  not 
paid,  and  were  returned  protested.  The  money  raised 
upon  them  in  this  country  had  been  probably  used  for 
the  purchase  of  negroes,  as  Wayne  writes  to  his  wife 
from  Georgia  in  August,  1786,  in  terms  which  lead  one 
to  suppose  that  his  plantation  was  in  successful  opera- 
tion. It  became,  of  course,  necessary  that  he  should 
pay  these  bills,  which  seem  to  have  come  into  the  hands 
of  the  agent  of  a  Scotch  house  in  Savannah,  by  whom 
immediate  payment  was  demanded.  Wayne  had  no 
money,  nor  could  he  at  that  time  raise  any,  although 
his  estate  was  abundantly  sufficient  to  pay  his  debts. 
He  took  the  only  course  which  any  honest  man  would 
have  taken  under  the  circumstances.  He  proposed 
to  his  creditors  either  that  time  should  be  given  to 
him  to  meet  their  claims  or  that  his  Georgia  planta- 
tion should  be  taken  in  satisfaction  of  the  debt  due 


3i2  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

them.  No  answer  was  ever  vouchsafed  to  this  propo- 
sition except  a  suit  at  law,  the  object  of  which  was  to 
make  his  estate  in  Pennsylvania,  as  well  as  that  in 
Georgia,  liable  for  the  payment.  Wayne  was  humili- 
ated and  indignant  beyond  expression  at  this  kind  of 
treatment,  and  stormed  in  his  letters  about  the  Shy- 
locks  who  were  determined  to  have  the  pound  of  flesh, 
in  a  way  which  goes  to  prove,  what  indeed  is  plain  from 
all  history,  that  a  successful  general  may  be,  and  often 
is,  a  very  bad  financier. 

It  is  not  worth  while  to  go  further  into  the  details 
of  the  unfortunate  controversy  which  grew  out  of  this 
generous  gift  of  the  State  of  Georgia.  It  doubtless 
did  more  to  embitter  the  closing  years  of  Wayne's  life 
than  anything  which  had  ever  happened  to  him.  It 
forced  him  to  do  what  must  have  been  most  galling  to 
the  pride  of  such  a  nature  as  his,  to  urge  one  of  his 
friends,  a  member  of  Congress  from  South  Carolina,  to 
ask  the  President  to  appoint  him  to  the  command  of 
the  forces  which  he  felt  quite  sure  must  be  raised  to 
repel  the  incursions  of  the  Creek  Indians.  The  result 
in  the  end  was  that  Wayne,  having  paid  his  debt,  held 
his  Pennsylvania  estate  and  sacrificed  that  in  Georgia. 
Thus  ended  his  effort  to  make  the  gift  of  the  people  of 
that  State  produce,  as  it  was  intended  it  should  do,  an 
income.  The  following  letter  to  his  wife,  written  some 
years  afterwards,  shows  how  deeply  he  felt  the  humili- 
ation of  being  in  debt.  He  felt  it  all  the  more  bitterly  as 
the  debt  had  been  incurred  in  order  to  make  that  gift  a 
real  and  available  one.  It  is  strange  that  so  much  of  Gen- 
eral Wayne's  sufferings,  bodily  and  mental,  should  have 
been  due  to  the  well-meant  act  of  the  people  of  Georgia. 


WAYNE  IN  CIVIL  LIFE.  313 

Richmond,  Georgia — 
5  July  '79° 
I  had  intended  writing  you  a  long  letter,  but  my  head  will  not 
permit  me,  at  present,  to  write  with  any  degree  of  coherency.     Per- 
secution has  almost  drove  me  mad  and  brings  to  my  recollection  a 
few  lines  from  "The  Old  Soldier," 

"  Once  gay  in  life  &  free  from  anxious  care, 

"  I  through  the  furrows  drove  the  shining  share, 

"  I  saw  my  waving  fields  with  plenty  crowned, 

11  And  yellow  Ceres  joyous  smile  around, 

"  Till  roused  by  freedom  at  my  country's  call 

"  I  left  my  peaceful  home  &  gave  up  all. 

**  Now,  forced  alas !  in  distant  climes  to  tread, 

"  This  crazy  body  longs  to  join  the  dead. 

"  Ungrateful  country !  when  the  danger's  o'er, 

'*  Your  bravest  sons  cold  charity  implore. 

•*  Ah  !  heave  for  me  a  sympathetic  sigh 

"  And  wipe  the  falling  tear  from  sorrow's  eye." 

Adieu — a  long  adieu 

Yours  most  affectionately 
A.  W. 

In  the  midst  of  his  financial  difficulties  General 
Wayne  seems  to  have  retained  the  affections  of  the 
people  of  Georgia.  He  had  been  obliged,  owing  to 
the  necessity  of  his  looking  after  his  estate  there,  and 
also  in  Pennsylvania,  to  change  his  residence  so  fre- 
quently that  it  became  somewhat  difficult  to  determine 
of  which  of  the  two  States  he  was,  in  his  legal  relations, 
a  citizen.  A  large  portion  of  the  people  of  Georgia 
determined  that  he  had  all  the  legal  requisites  to  serve 
them  as  a  member  of  Congress.  He  was  accordingly 
returned  as  having  been  elected  on  the  3d  of  January, 
1 79 1,  a  member  of  the  House  of  Representatives  from 
that  State.    His  election  was  contested  by  his  opponent, 


3i4  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE, 

Mr.  James  Jackson,  and  the  House  having  taken  the 
testimony  of  many  witnesses  in  Georgia  was  satisfied 
that  he  had  been  unduly  and  illegally  returned  as  a 
member.  The  election  seems  to  have  been  conducted 
without  any  legal  formalities,  private  persons  having 
acted  as  magistrates,  and  one  of  the  State  judges  having 
been  convicted  in  Georgia  of  having  certified  as  true 
a  false  return.  The  whole  business  was  so  irregularly 
conducted  that  the  House  of  Representatives  instead 
of  giving  the  seat  to  the  contestant  declared  all  the 
election  proceedings  void  and  ordered  that  a  new  one 
should  take  place.  It  was  not  pretended  by  any  one 
that  Wayne  had  been  in  any  way  privy  to  the  fraudu- 
lent acts  of  those  who  acted  as  election  officers.  As  he 
says  in  a  letter  written  shortly  after  the  decision  of  the 
House,  "  Both  Federalists  and  Anti- Federalists  pro- 
nounced in  the  Halls  of  Congress  that  after  the  fullest 
investigation  my  character  stood  pure  and  unsullied  as 
a  soldier's  ought  to  be."  So  free  was  he  from  any 
suspicion  of  this  kind,  that  a  few  days  after  the  ques- 
tion had  been  decided  he  was  appointed  by  President 
Washington  general-in-chief  of  the  army. 


CHAPTER    X. 

THE   CAMPAIGN   AGAINST  THE    NORTHWESTERN    INDIANS. 

In  April,  1792,  General  Wayne  was  appointed  by 
President  Washington  commander-in-chief  of  the  army 
of  the  United  States.  There  are  several  circumstances 
connected  with  this  appointment  which  are  noteworthy. 
In  the  first  place,  it  shows  that  the  President  shared  the 
general  conviction  that  General  Wayne  was  not  involved 
in  the  scandals  which  grew  out  of  this  contested  elec- 
tion in  Georgia,  and  that  his  personal  character  was 
wholly  unaffected  by  the  decision  of  the  House  of  Rep- 
resentatives. Then,  again,  the  position  to  which  he 
was  called  was  one  which  at  that  time  required  military 
and  diplomatic  skill  of  the  highest  order  to  fulfil  the 
duties  it  imposed  upon  the  commander.  Upon  his  con- 
duct, indeed,  would  depend,  in  a  great  measure,  whether 
the  United  States  should  become  involved  in  intermi- 
nable war  with  the  Indians  of  the  Northwest,  as  well  as 
with  the  English,  whose  refusal  to  comply  with  certain 
articles  of  the  treaty  of  1783,  and  notably  with  that 
which  provided  for  the  evacuation  of  the  forts  in  the 
territory  northwest  of  the  Ohio,  had  led  a  large  party 
in  the  country  to  clamor  for  war,  and  nearly  every  one 
to  feel  that  hostilities  were  inevitable.  These  last  cam- 
paigns of  Wayne  were  perhaps  the  most  arduous  of 
any  in  which  he  was  ever  engaged,  and  certainly  the 
importance  of  the  interests  at  stake  in  them,  which  in 

3»S 


316  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

one  word  may  be  described  as  the  peaceful  and  perma- 
nent occupation  of  our  national  territory  between  the 
Ohio  and  the  Mississippi  by  emigrants  from  other  sec- 
tions of  the  country,  can  hardly  be  exaggerated. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  the  country  north  and 
west  of  the  Ohio  having  been  ceded  by  Virginia  and 
Connecticut  to  the  United  States,  a  territorial  govern- 
ment had  been  organized  there  in  1787.  Every  effort 
had  been  made  to  induce  people,  and  especially  those 
who  had  belonged  to  the  disbanded  army  of  the  United 
States,  to  occupy  that  region.  The  result  was  that  a 
large  body  of  emigrants  from  all  parts  of  the  country, 
as  well  as  old  soldiers  and  their  families,  soon  strove  to 
make  their  new  homes  in  this  region,  where  they  were 
constantly  exposed  to  the  cruel  incursions  of  the  Indian 
savages.  To  such  an  extent  did  these  emigrants  suffer 
that  it  was  calculated  that  between  1783  and  1790  more 
than  fifteen  hundred  of  them,  including  women  and 
children,  were  slain.  Of  course  the  duty  and  policy 
of  the  government  were  plain,  and  that  was  to  provide 
protection  and  safety  for  those  whom  they  had  invited 
to  occupy  their  lands. 

It  is  well  to  understand  that  these  atrocities  were  not 
caused  for  the  most  part  by  any  provocations  on  the 
part  of  the  whites.  The  true  source  of  the  trouble 
among  the  Indians  was  much  older  and  deeper  than 
any  quarrel  between  them  and  the  whites  occurring  in 
the  territory  itself.  It  was  nothing  less  than  a  deter- 
mination on  the  part  of  the  savages  that  the  whites 
should  never  occupy  the  lands  west  of  the  Ohio,  and 
that  that  river  should  form  the  permanent  boundary 
between  them.     These  Indians  of  the  Northwest  were 


CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  INDIANS.  317 

the  Shawnees  and  the  Delawares  (generally  called  the 
Miamis),  who  had  been  driven  from  Pennsylvania  and 
had  taken  refuge  in  Ohio  after  the  capture  of  Fort  Du- 
quesne  by  Bouquet  in  1763.  As  the  allies  of  the  Eng- 
lish during  the  Revolution  they  had  proved,  under  a 
series  of  capable  chiefs,  among  the  most  persistent  and 
bitterest  enemies  of  the  American  cause.  When  it  was 
determined  to  subdue  them  by  a  military  force,  they 
and  their  numerous  allies,  the  Wyandots,  the  Miamis, 
the  Chippewas,  and  the  Pottawatomies,  were  concen- 
trated in  a  powerful  confederacy  in  the  northwest  por- 
tion of  Ohio,  near  the  rivers  Miami,  the  Maumee,  then 
called  Miami  of  the  Lake,  and  Lake  Erie.  Here  they 
had  ready  access  to  their  allies,  the  Indians  further  west, 
to  the  Canadians,  and  to  the  English  garrisons  at  Detroit 
and  at  certain  smaller  posts  in  Northern  Ohio.  That 
they  were  aided  and  encouraged  by  organized  forces 
of  Canadians  and  English  not  only  in  their  forays  against 
the  settlers,  but  also  in  their  hostilities  against  the 
American  government,  in  the  heart  of  whose  lands  the 
English  had  established  their  garrisons,  no  one  doubted. 
Hence  the  danger  that  in  striking  the  Indians  we  might 
be  drawn  into  a  war  with  England. 

The  government  had  undertaken  several  times  with- 
out success  to  reduce  these  tribes  to  submission,  first 
by  means  of  treaties  and  afterwards  by  force.  From 
the  time  the  territory  was  organized  until  the  tribes 
were  rendered  powerless  by  military  conquest  there 
was  one  stumbling-block  in  the  way,  which  no  effort 
by  negotiation,  and  no  policy  of  conciliation,  and  no 
successful  skirmishing,  could  remove,  and  that  was,  as 
we  have  said,  their  determination  that  the  Ohio  River 


318  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

should  form  the  boundary  between  them  and  the  whites. 
Every  emigrant  in  their  view  was  an  enemy  and  an 
invader  of  Indian  soil,  and  as  such  might  be  rightfully 
driven  off,  or  murdered  in  case  of  resistance.  The 
government  at  last  most  reluctantly  determined  to  send 
into  the  northern  portion  of  Ohio  an  armed  force  for 
the  protection  of  the  settlers."  In  1 790  General  Harmar, 
who  had  been  one  of  the  most  distinguished  officers  in 
the  Pennsylvania  line  during  the  Revolution,  was  sent 
by  St.  Clair,  the  governor  of  the  Northwest  Territory, 
with  a  force  of  fourteen  hundred  men  to  put  an  end,  if 
possible,  to  the  Indian  atrocities  from  which  the  settlers 
were  suffering.  The  army  was  a  motley  collection  of 
men  without  training,  ill  armed,  and  totally  Unwilling 
to  submit  to  the  restraints  of  discipline.  The  men  were 
very  badly  led  by  officers  who,  brave  indeed,  little  under- 
stood how  to  cope  successfully  with  the  wily  foe  they 
were  about  to  encounter.  They  destroyed  on  their 
march  a  number  of  Indian  villages,  but  the  savages 
themselves  were  untouched.  At  last  they  met  them 
in  force  near  the  site  of  the  present  Fort  Wayne  in 
Indiana.  Here  the  Indians  surprised  them,  broke  into 
their  camp,  and,  after  driving  them  from  it  with  con- 
siderable loss,  forced  the  army  to  retreat  to  Fort  Wash- 
ington (Cincinnati),  disgraced  in  its  own  eyes  and  with- 
out inflicting  upon  the  Indians  that  punishment  which 
would  henceforth  keep  them  quiet.  The  result  was,  in 
fact,  only  to  irritate  to  a  greater  degree  the  savages 
and  to  increase  their  thirst  for  revenge.  At  that  time, 
it  was  said,  there  were  only  two  hundred  and  eighty 
men  on  the  lands  of  the  Ohio  Company  capable  of  bear- 
ing arms,  so  that  they  were  in  no  condition  to  defend 


CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  INDIANS.  319 

themselves  without  aid.  The  massacres  after  Harmar's 
expedition  were  renewed,  and  the  panic  among  the 
Western  settlers  became  more  alarming  than  ever. 

To  complete  the  work  undertaken  by  Harmar  was 
the  reason  for  fitting  out  the  expedition  of  St.  Clair 
against  the  Northwestern  Indians  in  1 79 1 .  His  purpose 
originally  was  to  establish  a  chain  of  forts  from  Cincin- 
nati to  the  Maumee  (Miami  of  the  Lake).  He  had 
with  him  about  two  thousand  three  hundred  regular 
troops,  and  pushed  on  northward,  placing  his  forts  at 
convenient  distances.  Meantime  his  force  was  much 
diminished  by  illness  and  desertion.  On  the  3d  of 
November  he  reached  a  point  in  the  Indian  country 
near  the  junction  of  the  St.  Joseph  and  St.  Mary,  after- 
wards called  Fort  Recovery,  where  they  were  attacked 
in  great  force  by  the  savages.  The  regular  soldiers 
were  for  a  long  time  steady,  and  met  the  Indians  in  the 
formation  prescribed  for  fighting  troops  trained  in  the 
same  military  tactics  as  themselves.  But  these  tactics 
did  not  answer  with  the  Indians.  Officer  after  officer 
was  shot  down,  and  to  complete  their  discomfiture  the 
militia,  into  whose  camp  in  the  rear  of  the  regulars  the 
Indians  had  penetrated,  were  driven  into  the  rear  of 
the  line,  a  movement  which  was  not  only  fatal  to  the 
success  of  those  who  were  bravely  holding  their  own 
against  the  enemy  in  front,  but  one  which  threw  the 
whole  army  into  disorder.  There  was  no  alternative 
left  but  flight,  for  the  Indians  had  determined  to  sur- 
round the  army  and  to  destroy  every  man  in  it. 
They  were  bravely  resisted  for  hours,  but  the  result 
was  in  the  end  that  more  than  six  hundred  of  St.  Clair's 
soldiers  were  killed  or  disabled.     Many  officers  were 


32o  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

killed,  among  them  five  of  high  rank.  Some  of  these 
were  among  the  most  distinguished  of  the  Pennsylvania 
line  under  Wayne's  command  during  the  Revolution- 
ary campaigns.  On  that  field  fell  General  Richard 
Butler,  one  of  the  most  brilliant  and  heroic  officers 
of  the  army  of  the  Revolution,  the  friend  and  com- 
rade of  Wayne,  as  we  have  seen,  in  many  of  the  des- 
perate battles  of  that  war. 

The  following  account  of  the  death  of  General 
Richard  Butler  is  given  in  a  letter  from  Colonel  E.  G. 
W.  Butler  (his  nephew)  to  the  late  General  Robert 
Patterson,  of  this  city  : 

"  Having  been  shot  through  the  arm  &  then  through  the  body, 
my  father  [Edward  Butler],  then  a  captain  in  St.  Clair's  army, 
removed  him  [General  Butler]  from  the  field,  and  placed  him  against 
a  tree.  He  then  returned  to  the  battle  field  and  found  his  other 
brother,  Major  Thomas  Butler,  shot  through  both  legs.  He  took 
him  from  the  field  and  placed  him  by  the  side  of  the  General. 
After  the  loss  of  two-thirds  of  our  Army  it  gave  way,  and  the  Indians 
commenced  a  hot  pursuit.  Finding  my  father  incapable  of  saving 
both  his  brothers,  my  noble  uncle,  the  General,  said  :  *  Edward,  I 
am  mortally  wounded.  Leave  me  to  my  fate  and  save  my  brother.' 
And  so  they  left  him  alone  in  his  glory  ! 

M  Soon  after  Major  Gaither  of  his  command  seeing  the  General 
alone  called  to  some  men  to  assist  in  taking  him  from  the  field,  when 
he  remarked,  '  No,  Gaither,  you  will  only  compromise  your  own 
safety  by  the  attempt.  Take  this  sword  &  keep  it  for  my  sake,  and 
God  bless  you  !'  " 

The  defeat  of  Harmar  and  St.  Clair,  more  especially 
that  of  the  latter,  caused  the  utmost  consternation  and 
dismay  throughout  the  country.  These  defeats  were 
at  once  made  use  of  by  the  opponents  of  the  national 
administration  as  pretexts  to  accomplish  party  ends, 


CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  INDIANS.  321 

and  large  numbers  of  the  people  were  at  once  arrayed 
against  the  prosecution  of  any  Indian  war  whatever. 
The  cost  of  maintaining  the  army,  the  spectacle  of  its 
leader,  St.  Clair,  so  ill  "  as  to  be  unable  to  stand,"  the 
utter  want  of  discipline  among  the  soldiery,  the  wretched 
arms  with  which  they  were  supplied,  and  the  still  more 
wretched  food  which  the  contractor  provided  for  them, 
were  all  spoken  of  as  so  many  proofs  of  ignorance  or 
gross  mismanagement,  and  the  changes  were  so  skil- 
fully rung  on  charges  such  as  these,  that  an  Indian  war, 
even  to  maintain  our  unquestioned  territorial  rights, 
became  the  most  unpopular  of  measures.  Fortunately, 
there  was  strength  enough  in  the  administration  and 
Congress  to  withstand  party  assaults  such  as  these. 
The  government  determined  to  use  an  adequate  force 
to  maintain  our  rights  and  protect  the  settlers. 

The  first  thing  to  be  done  was  to  reorganize  the  army 
and  appoint  Wayne  to  the  command.  By  the  new  or- 
ganization the  army  was  to  consist  of  one  major-general, 
four  brigadier-generals  and  their  respective  staffs,  the 
necessary  number  of  commissioned  officers,  and  five 
thousand  one  hundred  and  twenty  non-commissioned 
officers  and  privates,  the  whole  to  be  denominated  the 
Legion  of  the  United  States,  The  Legion  was  to  be  di- 
vided into  four  sub-legions,  each  to  consist  of  the  com- 
missioned officers  named  and  one  thousand  two  hundred 
and  eighty  non-commissioned  officers  and  privates.  The 
previous  army  having  been  nearly  annihilated,  a  new  one 
was  to  be  recruited.  Wayne  was,  as  we  have  said,  ap- 
pointed to  the  command  of  this  force  (which  was  not  yet 
raised),  and  he  was  told  by  the  Secretary  of  War  at 
parting,  in  May,  1792,  by  way,  it  is  presumed,  of  encour- 

22 


322  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

aging  him  to  do  his  duty,  "  that  another  defeat  would 
be  inexpressibly  ruinous  to  the  reputation  of  the  gov- 
ernment." The  only  stipulation  made  by  Wayne  on 
assuming  command  of  the  expedition  was  that  the 
campaign  should  not  begin  until  his  Legion  was  filled 
up  and  properly  disciplined.  General  Wayne  must 
have  been  a  very  sanguine  man  if  he  could  have  looked 
forward  with  any  confidence  to  the  success  of  the  un- 
dertaking in  which  he  was  now  embarked.  We  shall 
see,  however,  from  the  preparations  he  made  for  the 
campaign,  that  he  trusted  nothing  to  good  fortune,  and 
that  in  all  his  movements  against  the  Indians  nothing 
was  more  conspicuous  by  its  absence  than  the  "  mad- 
ness" which  is  popularly  attributed  to  him. 

He  went  to  Pittsburgh  in  June,  1792,  and  there  en- 
deavored to  recruit  and  organize  his  army, — his  "  Le- 
gion," as  it  was  called.  Many  of  the  experienced  officers 
upon  whose  intelligent  aid  he  had  depended  during  the 
Revolutionary  War  had  been  slain  in  the  disastrous  cam- 
paigns of  Harmar  and  St.  Clair,  and  others  had  retired 
from  the  military  service.  He  was  forced  with  a  most 
inadequate  staff  so  to  drill  and  discipline  his  troops  that 
they  would  be  able  successfully  to  fight  with  the  Indians. 
Even  among  the  boldest  and  most  adventurous  spirits 
in  the  army  there  was  neither  hope  of  glory  nor  pros- 
pect of  reward  in  an  Indian  war.  The  sad  fate  of  St. 
Clair's  men,  the  horrible  mutilations  and  cruelties  prac- 
tised by  the  Indians  upon  their  prisoners,  and  their 
savage  mode  of  warfare  generally,  were  not  calculated 
to  rouse  much  enthusiasm  among  the  officers.  In 
the  private  soldiers,  and  especially  in  the  recruits,  the 
prospect  of  an  Indian  campaign  excited  a  feeling  of 


CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  INDIANS.  323 

horror  which  rendered  them  liable  at  any  moment  to 
a  panic. 

Desertions  became  so  common  that  in  a  short  time 
those  who  forsook  their  duty  became  almost  as  numer- 
ous as  those  who  remained  true  to  their  colors.  Fifty- 
seven  recruits  left  a  small  detachment  on  the  road  from 
Carlisle  to  Pittsburgh,  and  such  was  the  panicky  feeling 
among  those  who  remained  that  Wayne,  in  August, 
1792,  writes  from  the  latter  place,  "Two  nights  since, 
upon  a  report  that  a  large  body  of  Indians  were  close 
in  our  front,  I  ordered  the  troops  to  form  for  action,  and 
rode  along  the  line  to  inspire  them  with  confidence, 
and  gave  a  charge  to  those  in  the  redoubts,  which  I 
had  recently  thrown  up  in  our  front  and  right  flank,  to 
maintain  their  post  at  any  expense  of  blood  until  I 
could  gain  the  enemy's  rear  with  the  dragoons  ;  but 
such  is  the  defect  of  the  human  heart,  that  from  excess 
of  cowardice  one  third  of  the  sentries  deserted  from 
their  stations  so  as  to  leave  the  most  accessible  places 
unguarded." 

It  is  evident  that  soldiers  such  as  these  required  a 
long  training  and  familiarity  with  military  discipline  be- 
fore they  could  be  led  against  the  Indians  with  any 
hope  of  success.  Instruction  in  tactics  and  training 
in  their  military  duties  were  persistently  carried  on  by 
the  commanding  general  and  such  of  his  officers  as 
had  any  knowledge  or  experience.  The  natural  result 
was  that  as  the  camp  grew  in  numbers  the  confidence 
of  the  troops  and  their  efficiency  increased  in  the  same 
proportion. 

During  the  summer  and  autumn  efforts  were  made 
by  Wayne  to  ascertain  whether  the  Indians  were  still 


324  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

disposed  to  be  defiant.  Their  continued  depredations 
on  the  frontier  and  the  boastful  attitude  which  they 
maintained  were  the  answers  they  gave  to  all  attempts 
at  negotiation.  It  soon  became  clear  to  Wayne  that 
the  only  way  to  secure  Ohio  for  the  settlement  of  white 
men  was  to  march  into  the  country  occupied  by  the 
Indians  and  subdue  them.  Towards  the  close  of  the 
summer,  therefore,  he  moved  his  camp  to  a  position  on 
the  Ohio  about  twenty-seven  miles  below  Pittsburgh, 
so  as  to  be  nearer  the  seat  of  hostilities.  To  this  camp 
he  gave  the  name  of  "  Legionville."  There  he  re- 
mained during  the  winter,  recruiting  his  army,  instruct- 
ing it  regularly  in  its  military  duties,  and  in  the  mean 
time  (not  discouraged  by  his  hopeless  efforts  made 
hitherto)  striving  in  vain  to  conciliate  the  Indians. 
During  this  winter  the  discipline  of  his  little  army  was 
greatly  improved.  At  the  close  of  March  he  writes, 
"The  progress  that  the  troops  have  made  both  in 
manoeuvring  and  as  marksmen  astonished  the  savages 
on  St.  Patrick's  day;  and  I  am  happy  to  inform  you 
that  the  sons  of  that  Saint  were  perfectly  sober  and 
orderly,  being  out  of  the  reach  of  whiskey,  which 
baneful  poison  is  prohibited  from  entering  this  camp 
except  as  the  component  part  of  a  ration,  or  a  little  for 
fatigue  duty  or  on  some  extraordinary  occasion."  His 
force  now  consisted  of  about  two  thousand  five  hundred 
men,  and  he  was  inspired  with  high  hopes  of  success  in 
the  event  of  a  conflict  with  the  red  men.  A  character- 
istic act  of  his  at  this  time  proves  his  confidence  and 
spirit.  He  asked  the  Secretary  of  War  to  send  him 
certain  flags  and  standards  for  the  Legion,  and  on  re- 
ceiving them  he  wrote  what,  coming  from  a  man  of  his 


CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  INDIANS.  325 

keen  sense  of  military  honor,  had  a  peculiar  significance : 
"They  shall  not  be  lost"  In  May,  1793,  he  moved  his 
camp  to  Fort  Washington,  the  present  site  of  Cincin- 
nati. Although  in  the  preceding  January  he  had  been 
told  by  General  Knox,  the  Secretary  of  War,  "The 
sentiments  of  the  citizens  of  the  United  States  are 
adverse  in  the  extreme  to  an  Indian  war,"  and  although 
a  commission  of  men  of  the  highest  position  in  the 
country  had  been  named  to  treat  with  the  Indians  in 
the  hope  of  securing  peace,  still  General  Wayne  re- 
laxed in  no  way  his  efforts  to  maintain  a  highly  disci- 
plined and  efficient  army.  Most  probably  he  felt,  after 
his  experience  with  the  savages,  that  the  Indians  would 
yield  to  no  terms  which  we  could  offer  them.  He  was 
told  again  by  the  Secretary  of  War,  "  It  is  still  more 
necessary  than  heretofore  that  no  offensive  operations 
should  be  undertaken  against  the  Indians."  Still  he 
persevered,  and  it  was  well  for  the  country,  as  will  soon 
appear,  that  he  listened  not  to  the  voice  of  the  charmer 
when  she  promised  peace.  He  sent  to  Kentucky  for 
mounted  volunteers  to  aid  his  own  troops,  who  became 
more  disciplined  and  efficient  every  day,  and  calmly 
awaited  the  result  of  the  negotiations. 

It  is  worth  while  to  stop  and  consider  for  a  moment 
the  special  qualities  of  a  military  leader  which  he  now 
displayed.  His  correspondence  at  this  time  was  most 
extensive,  and  on  this  point  especially  it  is  most  instruc- 
tive. "  His  letters,"  as  one  of  his  biographers  says, 
"  when  exposed  to  the  most  critical  inspection,  display 
extraordinary  clearness  of  mind  and  felicity  of  expres- 
sion, strength  and  soundness  of  judgment,  admirable 
knowledge  of  the  duties  of  his  profession,  of  human 


326  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

nature,  of  the  people  of  the  frontiers  whom  he  was  to 
defend,  and  of  the  foes  whom  he  was  commissioned  to 
subdue." 

The  negotiations  with  the  Indians  turned  out,  as 
Wayne  had  expected,  to  be  fruitless,  they  insisting  that 
the  Ohio  River  should  be  the  boundary.  The  govern- 
ment, forced  sorely  against  its  will  to  make  another 
effort  to  subdue  them  by  force,  was  to  the  last  de- 
gree timid  in  its  measures,  and  it  sent  Wayne  instruc- 
tions as  to  his  movements  which  clearly  showed  how 
greatly  it  feared  the  result.  General  Knox  writes  to 
Wayne  in  September,  1 793,  "  Every  offer  has  been 
made  to  obtain  peace  by  milder  terms  than  the  sword  ; 
the  efforts  have  failed  under  circumstances  which  leave 
nothing  for  us  to  expect  but  war.  Let  it  therefore  be 
again,  and  for  the  last  time,  impressed  deeply  upon  your 
mind,  that  as  little  as  possible  is  to  be  hazarded,  that 
your  force  is  fully  adequate  to  the  object  you  purpose 
to  effect,  and  that  a  defeat  at  the  present  time,  and 
under  the  present  circumstances,  would  be  pernicious 
in  the  highest  degree  to  the  interests  of  our  country." 

General  Wayne's  answer  to  these  faint-hearted  sug- 
gestions was  very  characteristic.  As  soon  as  he  heard 
of  the  rupture  of  the  negotiations  he  made  ready  to 
advance,  and  on  the  5th  of  October  he  wrote  the  follow- 
ing answer  to  the  letter  of  the  Secretary  of  War  from 
"  Hobson's  Choice,"  his  camp  near  Cincinnati :  "I  will 
advance  to-morrow  with  the  force  I  have  in  order  to 
take  up  a  position  in  front  of  Fort  Jefferson,  so  as  to 
keep  the  enemy  in  check  by  exciting  a  jealousy  and 
apprehension  for  the  safety  of  their  women  and  children, 
until  some  favorable  circumstance  or  opportunity  may 


CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  INDIANS.  327 

present  to  strike  with  effect.  I  pray  you  not  to  permit 
present  appearances  to  cause  too  much  anxiety  either 
in  the  mind  of  the  President  or  yourself  on  account  of 
this  army.  Knowing  the  critical  situation  of  our  infant 
nation,  and  feeling  for  the  honor  and  reputation  of  the 
government  (which  I  will  support  with  my  latest  breath), 
you  may  rest  assured  that  I  will  not  commit  the  Legion 
unnecessarily.  Unless  more  powerfully  supported  than 
I  have  reason  to  expect,  I  will  content  myself  with  taking 
a  strong  position  in  advance  of  Fort  Jefferson,  and  by 
exerting  every  power  endeavor  to  protect  the  frontier 
and  secure  the  posts  and  the  army  during  the  winter,  or 
until  I  am  favored  with  your  further  orders." 

Such  was  the  magnanimous  spirit  with  which  Wayne 
entered  upon  the  campaign,  and  it  is  to  be  hoped  that 
the  expression  of  his  confidence  had  an  inspiring  effect 
upon  those  officials  who  had  been  so  utterly  cast  down 
by  the  defeats  of  Harmar  and  St.  Clair.  Wayne's  acts 
were  in  strict  accordance  with  his  promises.  On  the 
7th  of  October  the  army  began  its  march,  and  on  the 
13th  it  was  encamped  at  a  place  which  he  named,  in 
honor  of  his  old  friend  and  commander,  General  Greene, 
Greeneville.  This  post,  which  was  six  miles  in  advance 
of  Fort  Jefferson  and  eighty  miles  north  of  Cincinnati, 
on  a  branch  of  the  Miami,  he  selected  for  his  winter 
quarters,  and  strongly  fortified.  There  in  the  wilder- 
ness he  passed  the  winter,  cut  off  for  many  months 
from  any  communication  with  the  government  at  Phila- 
delphia, and,  of  course,  without  orders.  He  was  sur- 
rounded by  hostile  Indians.  Convoys  of  provisions  for 
the  camp  were  frequently  intercepted  and  their  escort 
murdered  by  the  savages.     To  render  his  troops  familiar 


328  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

with  danger,  a  large  detachment  was  sent  forward  to  the 
battle-field  where  St.  Clair  was  defeated  in  1 791,  with 
the  double  purpose  of  performing  the  pious  duty  of 
interring  the  bones  of  their  comrades  who  had  perished 
there,  and  of  building  a  fort  on  that  site  impregnable  to 
the  Indians.  This  fort  he  named  Fort  Recovery.  The 
erection  of  this  fort  seemed  to  bring  the  Indians  for  a 
time  to  some  measure  of  reason,  and  they  began  to  hint 
their  willingness  to  negotiate  for  peace.  Wayne  placed 
no  faith  in  their  professions,  but  still  felt  it  his  duty  to 
listen  to  what  they  had  to  say,  asking  only  that  they 
should  deliver  to  him  the  captives  they  had  made,  as  a 
proof  of  their  sincerity.  This  demand,  which  was  un- 
answered, closed  the  negotiation,  and  nothing  more  was 
heard  about  proposals  for  peace. 

Meantime  the  difficulties  in  coming  to  any  satisfactory 
agreement  with  the  Indians  were  increased  and  compli- 
cated by  the  support  which  they  were  evidently  receiving 
in  their  hostile  attitude  from  the  English  government. 
To  the  impressment  of  our  seamen,  and  the  confisca- 
tion of  the  cargoes  sent  by  us  to  the  French  West 
India  Islands,  was  added  the  support  it  gave  the  Indians 
in  their  depredations  in  Ohio.  The  English  still  main- 
tained strong  garrisons  within  our  territory,  while  the 
savages  were  openly  encouraged  by  the  authorities  in 
Canada.  Everything  seemed  to  forebode  war  at  no 
distant  day,  not  only  with  the  savage  tribes,  but  with 
the  English  as  well,  they  holding  the  position  of  openly- 
declared  allies  on  the  frontiers.  Wayne,  while  he  acted 
in  his  movements  with  extreme  caution,  made  himself 
ready  for  any  emergency  which  might  arise.  The  pru- 
dence of  the  course  he  pursued  received  the  unqualified 


CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  INDIANS.  329 

approbation  of  his  government.  He  was  told  that  his 
taking  post  on  the  battle-field  of  November,  1791  (St. 
Clair's),  and  the  manner  in  which  he  had  treated  the 
overtures  of  the  hostile  Indians,  were  "  highly  satisfactory 
and  exceedingly  proper."  x  The  Secretary  goes  on  in 
his  despatch  to  say,  "It  is  with  great  pleasure  that  I 
transmit  to  you  the  approbation  of  the  President  of 
your  conduct  generally  since  you  have  had  the  com- 
mand, and  more  particularly  for  the  judicious  military 
formation  and  discipline  of  your  troops  ;  the  precautions 
you  appear  to  have  taken  in  your  advance,  in  your  for- 
tified camp,  and  in  your  arrangements  for  a  full  and 
abundant  supply  of  provisions  on  hand."  This  com- 
mendation is  particularly  valuable,  as  it  was  bestowed 
upon  conduct  directly  the  reverse  of  that  pursued  by 
his  two  unfortunate  predecessors  in  similar  expeditions, 
Harmar  and  St.  Clair. 

In  order  that  Wayne  might  not  hesitate  in  the  course 
he  should  pursue  in  an  emergency  which  might  arise 
when  it  would  be  impossible  to  consult  the  government 
officers  at  Philadelphia,  he  was  told  by  Secretary  Knox, 
"  If  in  the  course  of  your  operations  against  the  Indian 
enemy  it  should  become  necessary  to  dislodge  the  party 
(the  English  garrison  at  the  rapids  of  the  Miami),  you 
are  hereby  authorized  in  the  name  of  the  President  of 
the  United  States  to  do  it."  Not  only,  therefore,  was 
the  sole  conduct  of  the  Indian  war  confided,  with  abso- 
lute powers,  to  the  discretion  of  Wayne  ("  Mad  An- 
thony," according  to  the  legend),  but  he  was  given 
authority  to  take  a  step  which  must  certainly  have  in- 

1  Moore,  186. 


330  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

volved  the  nation  in  a  war  with  Great  Britain.     How 
he  used  this  discretionary  power  we  shall  soon  see. 

On  the  30th  of  June  a  small  body  of  riflemen  and 
dragoons  was  attacked  near  Fort  Recovery,  and  this 
attack  was  followed  by  a  general  assault  upon  the  fort. 
The  enemy  were  driven  back,  but  renewed  the  assault 
with  greater  spirit,  and  were  finally  repulsed.  The  In- 
dians were,  no  doubt,  aided  by  the  English.  The  Amer- 
icans lost  some  valuable  officers  ;  but  the  lesson  taught 
the  Indians  by  their  repulse  on  the  same  spot  where  they 
had  defeated  St.  Clair  was  a  very  important  one,  for  they 
found  that  they  had  a  very  different  man  now  to  deal  with. 

A  few  days  afterwards  Wayne  was  joined  by  a  con- 
siderable force  of  Kentucky  volunteers  under  the  com- 
mand of  his  old  friend  and  comrade  of  Monmouth,  Major- 
General  Scott.  Thus  reinforced,  he  advanced  about 
seventy  miles  northward  from  Greeneville  into  the  heart 
of  the  Indian  country.  Having  disconcerted  the  savages 
by  this  unexpected  move,  he  boldly  confronted  the  Eng- 
lish garrison  established  at  the  rapids  of  the  Miami, 
and  determined  to  meet  the  allies  where  he  could  strike 
them  with  one  blow  and  thus  settle  the  question  of  the 
supremacy  of  either  or  both  of  them  on  the  frontier. 
He  built  a  fort  at  the  junction  of  the  Le  Glaize  and 
the  Miami,  to  which  he  gave  a  name  appropriately  de- 
scribing his  intentions  and  his  self-confidence, — that  of 
Fort  Defiance.  He  then  sent  to  the  Indians  a  last 
overture  for  peace,  and,  that  being  spurned,  prepared 
to  fiofht  one  of  the  most  memorable  Indian  battles  in 
our  history,  if  regard  be  had  to  the  greatness  of  the 
stake  which  he  put  at  issue  and  to  the  vast  results 
which  followed  his  success. 


CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  INDIANS.  331 

The  following  account  of  the  signal  defeat  of  the 
Indians  and  their  allies  is  given  in  his  despatch  to  the 
government  announcing  the  victory : 

General  Wayne  to  the  Secretary  of  War. 

Head  Quarters, 
Grand  Glaize  28  August  1794 

Sir, — It  is  with  infinite  pleasure  that  I  now  announce  to  you  the 
brilliant  success  of  the  Federal  Army  under  my  command  in  a  gen- 
eral action  with  the  combined  force  of  the  hostile  Indians  and  a 
considerable  number  of  the  volunteers  &  militia  of  Detroit  (Cana- 
dians) on  the  20th  inst  on  the  banks  of  the  Miamis  in  the  Vicinity  of 
the  British  post  and  garrison  at  the  foot  of  the  rapids. 

The  Army  advanced  from  this  place  on  the  15th  inst  and 
arrived  at  Roche  de-Bout  on  the  18th.  On  the  19th  we  were  em- 
ployed in  making  a  temporary  post  for  the  reception  of  our  stores 
and  baggage,  and  in  reconnoitering  the  position  of  the  enemy,  who 
were  encamped  behind  a  thick  and  bushy  wood  and  the  British  fort. 

At  8  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  the  20th  the  army  again  ad- 
vanced in  columns  agreeably  to  the  standing  order  of  march :  the 
legion  on  the  right  flank  covered  by  the  Miamis,  one  brigade  of 
mounted  volunteers  on  the  left  under  Brigadier  General  Todd,  and 
the  other  in  the  rear  under  Brigadier  General  Barber :  a  select  bat- 
talion of  Mounted  Volunteers  moved  in  front  of  the  Legion  com- 
manded by  Major  Price  who  was  directed  to  keep  sufficiently  ad- 
vanced,— so  as  to  give  timely  notice  to  form  in  case  of  action — it 
being  yet  undetermined  whether  the  Indians  would  decide  for  peace 
or  for  war.  After  advancing  about  five  miles  Major  Price's  Corps 
received  so  severe  a  fire  from  the  enemy,  who  were  secreted  in  the 
woods  and  in  the  high  grass,  as  to  compel  him  to  retreat. 

The  Legion  was  immediately  formed  in  two  lines  principally  in 
a  close  thick  wood  which  extended  for  miles  on  our  left  and  for  a 
very  considerable  distance  in  front,  the  ground  being  covered  with 
old  fallen  timber  probably  occasioned  by  a  tornado  which  rendered 
it  impracticable  for  cavalry  to  act  with  effect,  and  afforded  the 
enemy  the  most  favorable  covert  for  their  savage  mode  of  warfare. 
They  were  formed  in  three  lines  within  supporting  distance  of  each 
other  and  extending  nearly  two  miles  at  right  angles  with  the  river. 


332  MAJOR  GENERAL   WAYNE. 

I  soon  discovered  from  the  weight  of  the  fire  and  the  extent  of 
their  line  that  the  enemy  were  in  full  force  in  front  in  possession 
of  their  favorite  ground,  and  endeavoring  to  turn  our  left  flank.  I 
therefore  gave  orders  for  the  second  line  to  advance  to  support  the 
first,  and  directed  Major  General  Scott  to  gain  &  turn  the  right 
flank  of  the  savages  with  the  whole  of  the  Mounted  Volunteers  by 
a  circuitous  route.  At  the  same  time  I  ordered  the  front  line  to  ad- 
vance with  trailed  arms,  and  rouse  the  Indians  from  their  coverts  at 
the  point  of  the  bayonet  and  when  up  to  deliver  a  close  &  well 
directed  fire  on  their  backs  followed  by  a  brisk  charge  so  as  not  to 
give  time  to  load  again.  I  also  ordered  Captain  Miss  (sic)  Campbell  ■ 
who  commanded  the  legionary  cavalry,  to  turn  the  left  flank  of  the 
enemy  next  the  river,  and  which  afforded  a  favorable  field  for  that 
corps  to  act  in. 

All  these  orders  were  obeyed  with  spirit  and  promptitude,  but 
such  was  the  impetuosity  of  the  charge  by  the  first  line  of  infantry 
that  the  Indians  and  Canadian  militia  and  volunteers  were  driven 
from  all  their  coverts  in  so  short  a  time  that  although  every  exertion 
was  used  by  the  officers  of  the  second  line  of  the  legion,  and  by 
Generals  Scott,  Todd,  &  Barber  of  the  Mounted  Volunteers  to  gain 
their  proper  positions  yet  but  a  part  of  each  could  get  up  in  season 
to  participate  in  the  action  the  enemy  being  driven  in  the  course  of 
an  hour  more  than  two  miles  through  the  thick  woods  already  men- 
tioned by  less  than  one  half  of  their  numbers. 

From  every  account  the  enemy  amounted  to  2000  combatants, 
and  the  troops  actually  engaged  against  them  were  short  of  900. 
This  horde  of  savages  with  their  allies  abandoned  themselves  to 
flight,  and  dispersed  with  terror  and  dismay  leaving  our  victorious 
army  in  full  &  quiet  possession  of  the  field  of  battle  which  termi- 
nated under  the  influence  of  the  guns  of  the  British  garrison,  as  you 
will  perceive  by  the  enclosed  correspondence  between  Major  Camp- 
bell, the  commandant,  &  myself  upon  the  occasion. 

The  bravery  &  conduct  of  every  officer  belonging  to  the  army 
from  the  Generals  down  to  the  Ensigns  merit  my  highest  approba- 
tion.     There  were  however  some  whose  rank  &  situation  placed 

1  The  name  of  this  officer  is  written  in  the  official  muster-roll  of 
the  Legion  "Robert  Miss  Campbell." 


CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  INDIANS.  333 

their  conduct  in  a  very  conspicuous  point  of  view,  and  which  I 
observed  with  pleasure  and  the  most  lively  gratitude :  among  whom 
I  must  beg  leave  to  mention  Brigadier  Gen.  Wilkinson  and  Col. 
Hamtramck,  the  commandants  of  the  right  &  left  wings  of  the 
Legion,  whose  brave  example  inspired  the  troops.  To  these  I  must 
add  the  names  of  my  faithful  and  gallant  aids-de-camp,  Captains 
De  Butts  and  T.  Lewis,  and  Lieutenant  Harrison,  who  with  Adju- 
tant General  Major  Mills  rendered  me  most  essential  service  by 
communicating  my  orders  in  every  direction  and  by  their  conduct 
&  bravery  exciting  the  troops  to  press  for  victory.  Lieutenant  Cov- 
ington upon  whom  the  command  of  the  cavalry  devolved  cut  down 
two  savages  with  his  own  hand,  and  Lieutenant  Webb  one  in  turning 
the  enemy's  left  flank. 

The  wounds  received  by  Captains  Slough  and  Prior,  and  Lieu- 
tenants Campbell  &  Smith  of  the  legionary  infantry,  by  Captain 
Van  Renselaer  of  the  dragoons,  and  Captain  Rawlins,  Lieutenant 
McKenney  and  Ensign  Duncan  of  the  Mounted  Volunteers  bear 
honorable  testimony  of  their  bravery  &  conduct. 

Captains  H.  Lewis  and  Brock  with  their  companies  of  light  in- 
fantry had  to  sustain  an  unequal  fire  for  some  time  which  they  sup- 
ported with  fortitude.  In  fact  every  officer  &  soldier  who  had  an 
opportunity  to  come  into  action  displayed  that  true  bravery  which 
will  always  insure  success. 

And  here  permit  me  to  declare  that  I  never  discovered  more  true 
spirit  and  anxiety  for  action  than  appeared  to  pervade  the  whole 
of  the  Mounted  Volunteers,  and  I  am  well  persuaded  that  had  the 
enemy  maintained  their  favorite  ground  for  one  half  hour  longer 
they  would  have  most  severely  felt  the  prowess  of  that  corps. 

But  whilst  I  pay  this  first  tribute  to  the  living  I  must  not  forget 
the  gallant  dead,  among  whom  we  have  to  lament  the  early  death  of 
those  worthy  &  brave  officers,  Captain  Miss  Campbell  of  the  Dra- 
goons, and  Lieutenant  Towles  of  the  light  infantry  of  the  legion 
who  fell  in  the  first  charge. 

Enclosed  is  a  particular  return  of  the  killed  and  wounded.  The 
loss  of  the  enemy  was  more  than  double  that  of  the  Federal  army. 
The  woods  were  strewed  for  a  considerable  distance  with  the  dead 
bodies  of  the  Indians  &  their  white  auxiliaries,  the  latter  armed 
with  British  muskets  and  bayonets. 


334  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

We  remained  three  days  and  nights  on  the  banks  of  the  Miamis 
in  front  of  the  field  of  battle  during  which  time  all  the  houses  and 
corn  fields  were  consumed  &  destroyed  for  a  considerable  distance 
both  above  and  below  Fort  Miamis,  as  well  as  within  pistol  shot  of 
that  garrison,  who  were  compelled  to  remain  tacit  spectators  of  this 
general  devastation  and  conflagration  ;  among  which  were  the  houses 
stores  and  property  of  Colonel  M'Kee,  the  British  Indian  Agent, 
and  principal  stimulator  of  the  war  now  existing  between  the  United 
States  and  the  savages. 

The  Army  returned  to  this  place  on  the  27th  by  easy  marches, 
laying  waste  the  villages  &  the  corn  fields  for  about  fifty  miles  on 
each  side  of  the  Miamis.  There  remain  yet  a  number  of  villages 
and  a  great  quantity  of  corn  to  be  consumed  or  destroyed  upon  Le 
Glaize  and  the  Miamis  above  this  place  which  will  be  effected  in  the 
course  of  a  few  days.  In  the  interim  we  shall  improve  Fort  Defiance, 
and  as  soon  as  the  escort  returns  with  the  necessary  supplies  from 
Greeneville  and  Fort  Recovery  the  Army  will  proceed  to  the  Miami 
villages  in  order  to  accomplish  the  object  of  the  campaign. 

It  is  however  not  improbable  that  the  enemy  may  make  one  more 
desperate  effort  against  the  Army,  as  it  is  said  that  a  reinforcement 
was  hourly  expected  at  Fort  Miamis  from  Niagara  as  well  as  numer- 
ous tribes  of  Indians,  living  on  the  margin  and  islands  of  the 
Lakes.  This  is  a  business  rather  to  be  wished  for  than  dreaded, 
whilst  the  army  remains  in  force.  Their  numbers  will  only  tend  to 
confuse  the  savages,  and  the  victory  will  only  be  more  complete  and 
decisive,  and  which  eventually  may  insure  a  permanent  &  happy 
peace. 

Under  these  impressions  I  have  the  honor  to  be  &c 

Anth'y  Wayne. 

It  is  related  of  General  Wayne  that  at  the  time  the 
battle  began  (about  ten  a.m.)  he  was  suffering  to  that 
degree  from  an  attack  of  the  gout  that  it  was  necessary 
to  lift  him  on  his  horse.  His  limbs  were  swathed  in 
flannels,  and  so  intolerable  was  his  agony  that  it  is  said 
it  forced  tears  from  his  eyes.  But  by  noon,  in  the 
excitement  of  the  battle,  he  became  wholly  free  from 


CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  INDIANS.  335 

pain,  and  his  movements  were  as  active  as  those  of  any 
of  his  officers.  The  next  day  he  seems  to  have  recov- 
ered his  strength,  for,  accompanied  by  the  members  of 
his  staff,  he  reconnoitred  the  British  fort  very  closely,  a 
proceeding  which  gave  great  offence  to  the  commander 
and  led  to  the  following  correspondence : 

Major  Campbell  to  General  Wayne. 

Miami  River  Aug  21st  1794 
Sir, — An  Army  of  the  United  States  of  America  said  to  be  under 
your  command  having  taken  post  on  the  banks  of  the  Miami  for 
upwards  of  the  last  twenty  four  hours  almost  within  reach  of  the 
guns  of  this  fort,  being  a  post  belonging  to  his  Majesty  the  King  of 
Great  Britain,  occupied  by  his  Majesty's  troops,  and  which  I  have 
the  honor  to  command,  it  becomes  my  duty  to  inform  myself  as 
speedily  as  possible  in  what  light  I  am  to  view  your  making  such 
near  approaches  to  this  garrison.  I  have  no  hesitation,  on  my  part 
to  say  that  I  know  of  no  war  existing  between  Great  Britain  & 
America. 

I  have  to  honor  to  be  &c  &c 

William  Campbell 
Major  24th  Regiment  commanding  the  Post. 

General  Wayne  to  Major  Campbell. 

Camp  on  the  Banks  of  the  Miami 
Aug  21,  1794 

Sir, — I  have  received  your  letter  of  this  date,  requiring  from  me 
the  motives  which  have  moved  the  Army  under  my  command  to  the 
position  they  at  present  occupy  far  within  the  acknowledged  juris- 
diction of  the  United  States. 

Without  questioning  the  authority  or  the  propriety,  Sir,  of  your 
interrogatory,  I  think  I  may  without  breach  of  decorum  observe 
to  you  that  were  you  entitled  to  an  answer,  the  most  full  and  satis- 
factory one  was  announced  to  you  from  the  muzzles  of  my  small 
arms  yesterday  morning  in  the  action  against  the  hordes  of  savages 
in  the  vicinity  of  your  post  which  terminated  gloriously  to  the  Amer- 


336  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

ican  arras,  but  had  it  continued  until  the  Indians  etc  were  driven 
under  the  influence  of  the  post  and  guns  you  mention  they  would  not 
have  much  impeded  the  progress  of  the  Victorious  Army  under  my 
command — as  no  such  post  was  established  at  the  commencement  of 
the  present  war  between  the  Indians  &  the  United  States 
I  have  the  honor  to  be  &c 

Anthony  Wayne 
Major  General  &  Commander-in-Chief. 

The  toils  and  perplexities  of  this  Indian  campaign 
were  not  the  only  ones  from  which  Wayne  suffered 
in  his  enfeebled  condition  during  the  year  1794.  The 
condition  of  affairs  on  the  Mississippi  River  became  in 
that  year  alarming,  and  had  not  some  military  measure 
been  taken  to  check  the  excitement,  a  war  with  Spain, 
which  then  held  the  military  posts  on  that  river  from 
New  Madrid  to  New  Orleans,  was  highly  probable. 
Incensed  by  the  vexatious  proceedings  of  the  Spanish 
authorities  at  these  posts  in  interfering  with  what  the 
Western  people  claimed  was  their  right  to  the  free 
navigation  of  the  river,  large  bodies  of  men  were  en- 
listed in  Kentucky  who  threatened  to  descend  the  river 
to  the  Gulf  and  destroy  all  Spanish  control  of  it  or  of 
the  country  on  its  borders.  As  general-in-chief  of  the 
army,  Wayne  had  military  jurisdiction  over  this  region^ 
and  he  was  obliged  to  send  a  portion  of  his  already 
depleted  Legion  to  serve  as  a  garrison  at  Fort  Massac, 
on  the  Ohio,  with  orders  to  arrest  any  armed  parties 
descending  the  river  and  threatening  hostilities  with 
Spain.  He  could  rely  upon  very  little  assistance  or 
sympathy  from  the  governor  of  Kentucky  in  the  per- 
formance of  this  duty.  He  was  thus  placed  in  the 
painfully   embarrassing   position  of  being  obliged   so 


CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  INDIANS.  337 

prudently  to  manage  his  small  force  that  while  he  sub- 
dued the  Indians  he  might  not  involve  the  country  in  a 
war  with  both  England  and  Spain. 

It  is  not  easy  to  overrate  the  importance,  from  a 
national  point  of  view,  of  the  victory  over  the  savages  at 
the  Falls  of  the  Miami.  It  was  one  of  the  few  in  our 
history  which  we  may  call  decisive.  That  it  dissipated 
the  cherished  dream  of  the  Indians  that  the  Ohio  River 
was  to  be  the  perpetual  boundary  between  them  and 
the  whites  was,  perhaps,  the  least  important  of  its 
results.  In  opening  the  magnificent  national  domain 
of  the  West  to  emigrants,  secured  in  their  life,  liberty, 
and  property  by  laws  of  their  own  making,  it  may  well 
be  regarded,  when  we  reflect  upon  the  history  of  that 
vast  region  during  the  last  hundred  years,  as  having 
given  birth  to  a  new  era  in  the  history  of  American 
civilization.  The  millions  of  freemen  who  now  occupy 
the  energetic  and  vigorous  commonwealths  lying  be- 
tween the  Ohio  and  the  Mississippi  should  cherish  the 
memory  of  Wayne  as  that  of  the  man  who  by  his  sword 
made  it  possible  for  white  men  to  live  in  peace  and 
security  in  that  garden  spot  of  the  world ;  and  the 
nation,  proud  as  it  ought  to  be  of  Waynes  achieve- 
ments during  the  war  of  the  Revolution,  should  never 
forget  that  it  was  he  who  by  his  skill  and  prowess 
changed  the  howling  wilderness  of  the  Northwest  Ter- 
ritory, where  the  highest  glory  of  the  savage  inhabitant 
had  been  the  scalping  of  the  whites,  into  a  country 
where  the  cultivation  of  all  the  arts  of  peace  betokens 
the  highest  civilization. 

The  result  of  the  battle  of  the  Miami  was,  as  we  have 
seen,  the  complete  subjugation  of  the  Indians  of  the 

23 


338  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

Northwest.  Although  their  real  leader,  Joseph  Brant, 
and  his  English  allies  tried  to  stimulate  the  tribesmen 
to  tempt  the  fortune  of  war  once  more,  they  were 
too  wise  to  follow  such  counsel.  They  were  forced 
in  August,  1795,  to  conclude  a  treaty  with  the  United 
States  at  Greeneville,  by  which  a  vast  tract  of  territory 
west  of  the  Ohio  and  northwardly  to  Detroit  was  ceded 
to  the  national  government. 

The  lines  enclosing  the  Indian  territory  were  drawn 
from  Lake  Erie  along  the  Cuyahoga  River  to  the 
Portage,  thence  west  to  the  Maumee,  down  that  river 
to  the  lake,  and  thence  to  the  place  of  beginning. 
Within  these  lines  the  Indian  claim  to  territory  was 
acknowledged,  and  without  them  lay  the  lands  of  the 
whites,  where  for  seventeen  years  after  the  conclusion 
of  the  treaty  there  was  uninterrupted  peace  between  the 
Indians  and  their  neighbors.  During  this  period  the 
State  of  Ohio  became  rapidly  settled  by  the  whites,  and 
at  its  close  they  were  in  no  fear  of  the  savages. 

What  the  national  government  gained  not  only  in 
acquisition  of  territory  and  hence  in  power,  but  in  the 
vast  sums  for  which  their  lands  in  this  region  were  sold, 
liberated  by  Wayne's  victory  from  the  fear  of  Indian 
raids,  it  is  not  necessary  to  recount  here.  Wayne's 
victory  and  the  treaty  of  Greeneville,  which  was  its 
logical  result,  form  the  true  "winning  of  the  North- 
west," the  full  story  of  which  is  that  of  the  most  mar- 
vellous achievement  in  American  history. 

Nor  should  we  forget  the  influence  of  this  battle  upon 
our  relations  with  England.  When  it  took  place  the 
negotiations  which  ended  in  Jay's  treaty  were  in  prog- 
ress.    One  point  which,  as  we  have  said,  was  obstinately 


CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  INDIANS.  339 

disputed  between  Mr.  Jay  and  the  English  Ministry 
was  the  retention  of  the  posts  held  by  English  garrisons 
within  our  territory,  in  violation  of  the  treaty  of  1783. 
When  the  news  of  this  battle  reached  London,  and  it 
was  seen  that  all  hope  of  further  aid  from  the  Indians  in 
supporting  their  pretensions  to  our  territory  must  be 
given  up,  an  agreement  was  soon  reached,  and  orders 
for  the  evacuation  of  these  posts,  the  chief  of  which  were 
at  Detroit,  Oswego,  and  Niagara,  were  soon  sent  out. 

After  the  conclusion  of  the  treaty  of  Greeneville,  in 
August,  1795,  General  Wayne,  having  been  absent  from 
home  more  than  three  years,  spent  in  the  most  laborious 
and  useful  service,  paid  a  short  visit  to  Pennsylvania. 
His  progress  was  a  triumphal  one.  "  Everywhere,"  says 
one  of  his  biographers,  "  the  people  turned  out  en  masse 
to  give  him  welcome  ;  at  the  news  of  his  coming  all  busi- 
ness was  suspended  to  bestow  upon  him  a  greeting  as  he 
passed."  Reaching  Philadelphia,  we  find  the  following 
account  of  his  reception  in  the  newspapers  of  the  day : 

"  On  Saturday  last  (February  6th),  about  five  o'clock  in  the  after- 
noon, arrived  in  this  city,  after  an  absence  of  more  than  three  years 
on  an  expedition  against  the  Western  Indians  (in  which  he  proved 
so  happily  successful),  Major-General  Wayne.  Four  miles  from  the 
city  he  was  met  by  three  troops  of  Philadelphia  Light  Horse,  and 
escorted  by  them  to  town.  On  his  crossing  the  Schuylkill  a  salute 
of  fifteen  cannon  was  fired  from  Center  Square  by  a  party  of  artil- 
lery. He  was  ushered  into  the  City  by  the  ringing  of  bells  and 
other  demonstrations  of  joy,  and  thousands  of  citizens  crowded  to 
see  and  welcome  the  return  of  their  brave  general,  whom  they 
attended  to  the  City  Tavern,  where  he  alighted.  In  the  evening  a 
display  of  fireworks  was  exhibited. " 

The  President  of  the  United  States  (General  Wash- 
ington) in  a  message  to  Congress  referred  in  fitting 


34o  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

terms  to  the  achievements  of  General  Wayne  and  to 
the  vast  consequences  likely  to  follow  from  his  victory. 
An  attempt  was  made  in  the  House  of  Representatives 
to  recognize  the  wise  counsels  and  the  intrepid  bravery 
of  the  man  to  whom  the  success  of  the  campaign  was 
chiefly  due.  Here  party  malignity  interposed  with  its 
venomous  spirit,  and  the  House,  with  singular  incon- 
sistency, while  refusing  to  give  to  the  leader  his  due 
meed  of  praise,  adopted  the  following  resolution  :  "  Re- 
solved unanimously \  That  the  thanks  of  this  House  be 
given  to  the  brave  officers  and  soldiers  of  the  Legion 
under  the  orders  of  General  Wayne  for  their  prudence, 
fortitude,  and  bravery/' 

Had  these  short-sighted  politicians  been  endowed 
with  a  gift  of  prophecy  which  would  have  enabled  them 
to  look  forward  for  fifty  years  into  the  future  of  their 
country,  they  would  doubtless  have  owned  to  their  own 
confusion  that  even  such  triumphal  honors  as  were 
awarded  to  Roman  conquerors  would  have  been  a  fit- 
ting tribute  to  Wayne.  Pompey  the  Great  when  he 
presented  to  the  Senate  and  people  of  Rome  the  sub- 
mission of  Syria,  Phoenicia,  and  Palestine  as  the  tro- 
phies of  his  conquering  army,  and  the  illustrious  Caesar 
when  he  forced  Egypt,  Africa,  and  Gaul  to  bow  to 
the  supremacy  of  the  Roman  authority,  by  the  voice  of 
public  gratitude  were  made  masters  of  the  Republic. 
What  is  due  to  the  memory  of  the  man  whose  prudence 
and  valor  gave  to  the  American  people  the  peaceful 
possession  of  the  magnificent  domain  of  the  West  ? 

Wayne  was  permitted  on  his  return  home  to  enjoy 
but  a  short  holiday.  During  the  winter  of  1796  the 
opposition  to  the  enforcement  of  Jay's  treaty  had  be- 


CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  INDIANS.  341 

come  so  violent  that  it  seemed  at  one  time  probable 
that  the  House  would  not  make  the  appropriations 
necessary  to  carry  the  provisions  of  the  treaty  into 
effect  after  its  ratification  by  the  Senate.  The  alterna- 
tive, of  course,  was  war  with  Great  Britain,  and  war 
was  clamored  for  by  vast  numbers  of  people,  who 
could  not  speak  of  the  capture  of  our  vessels  and  the 
loss  of  our  commerce,  still  kept  up  by  the  English 
cruisers,  except  in  terms  of  violent  indignation.  If  the 
treaty  negotiated  by  Mr.  Jay  had  not  been  carried  out, 
then,  in  addition  to  other  evils,  the  English  posts  on  our 
northern  frontier  would  have  been  retained  in  the  hands 
of  our  enemies,  and  they,  held  as  a  vantage-ground 
within  our  territory  and  supported  by  the  alliance  of 
the  Indians,  would  have  practically  abrogated  the  treaty 
of  Greeneville  and  opened  anew  the  country  west  of  the 
Ohio  to  all  the  horrors  from  which  that  agreement  had 
delivered  it.  Hence  it  may  be  understood  with  what 
anxiety  the  administration  of  Washington  regarded  the 
opposition  and  delay  of  the  House  in  making  appro- 
priations to  carry  Mr.  Jay's  treaty  into  effect,  and  how 
momentous  was  the  destiny  which  hung  upon  their 
decision.  On  the  30th  of  April  the  memorable  debate 
on  this  bill  was  concluded,  and  principally  through  the 
influence  of  Fisher  Ames  the  House  decided,  by  a 
vote  of  fifty-one  to  forty-eight,  to  make  appropriations 
to  carry  the  treaty  into  effect. 

This  measure  happily  closed  another  most  critical 
juncture  in  the  history  of  the  West.  When  the  news 
of  its  adoption  reached  that  region,  the  arrangements 
which  had  been  begun  during  the  winter  for  an  alli- 
ance between  the  English  garrisons  and  the  Indians  for 


342  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

a  new  campaign  in  the  Northwest  Territory  suddenly 
ceased,  and  the  government  received  the  welcome 
news  that  the  officers  in  command  of  those  garrisons 
had  at  length  received  orders  to  surrender  them  to  the 
Americans  in  pursuance  of  the  terms  of  the  treaty. 

In  order  that  there  might  be  no  delay  or  interruption 
in  the  proceedings  connected  with  the  delivery  of  these 
posts,  it  was  necessary  that  some  one  should  be  ap- 
pointed as  the  agent  of  the  government  who  was  not 
only  perfectly  familiar  with  its  policy,  but  who  also,  from 
his  position  and  character  and  general  acquaintance 
with  the  parties  to  the  controversy,  could  be  trusted  to 
carry  out  that  policy.  General  Wayne  was  the  man 
appointed  by  the  government  to  conduct  what  it  was 
supposed  might  prove  a  very  difficult  and  delicate  ne- 
gotiation. His  qualifications  may  be  summed  up  in  a 
very  few  words :  "  He  knew  the  English  on  the  border 
and  their  allies  the  Indians,  and  they  knew  him.  His 
appointment  was  a  notice  to  those  who  had  opposed 
the  treaty  that  there  would  be  no  trifling  nor  delay 
while  the  business  was  in  his  hands." 

The  treaty  stipulated  that  the  English  should  surren- 
der into  our  hands  the  posts  at  Niagara,  Oswego,  the 
Miami,  and  Detroit.  At  the  beginning  of  June  Wayne 
was  ordered  to  visit  these  posts  and  take  possession  of 
them  in  behalf  of  the  United  States.  His  commission 
invested  him  with  the  powers  of  a  civil  commissioner  as 
well  as  with  those  of  a  military  commander.  He  exe- 
cuted his  task  with  wonderful  tact  and  discretion.  He 
was  received  by  the  English  officers  commanding  the 
garrisons  not  only  with  official  courtesy  but  in  a  kind 
and  friendly  spirit  which  indicated  their  readiness  to 


CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  INDIANS.  343 

close  the  dispute.  He  visited  the  different  forts  in  suc- 
cession, and  in  no  case  was  any  obstacle  interposed 
to  carrying  out  the  formalities  of  the  transfer  to  the 
American  government.  He  reached  Detroit  in  Sep- 
tember, where  he  found  many  Indians,  his  former  foes, 
by  whom  he  was  welcomed  with  many  noisy  demon- 
strations of  admiration,  for  with  all  their  defects  the  In- 
dians never  fail  to  recognize  the  truly  brave  man,  even 
if  he  is,  as  he  was  in  this  case,  their  conqueror.  He 
remained  at  this  post  for  more  than  two  months,  his 
evident  sincerity  and  kindly  disposition  being  a  power- 
ful means  of  influence  in  cementing  a  lasting  friendship 
between  the  Indians  and  their  former  enemies. 

On  the  1 7th  of  November  he  sailed  from  Detroit  for 
Presqu'isle,  the  site  of  the  present  city  of  Erie,  which 
was  the  last  post  he  was  ordered  to  visit.  Within  a 
day's  sail  of  that  place  he  was  suddenly  seized  with  an 
attack  of  gout,  and  he  reached  Erie  in  a  dying  con- 
dition. He  was  removed  to  the  quarters  of  the  com- 
mander of  the  post  or  block-house  at  that  place, 
Captain  Russell  Bissell,  where  he  seemed  for  a  time 
to  recover  his  strength.  Neither  the  kindness  of  the 
family  of  Captain  Bissell,  however,  nor  the  skill  and 
attention  of  the  surgeon  of  the  post,  Dr.  George 
Balfour,  could  relieve  him.  The  disease  reached  his 
stomach  and  gave  the  general  intolerable  agony  for 
several  weeks,  all  efforts  to  revive  him  or  to  mitigate 
his  sufferings  proving  vain.  At  last,  on  the  15th  of 
December,  he  breathed  his  last  in  the  arms  of  Dr. 
Balfour.  He  was  buried,  according  to  his  wish,  at  the 
foot  of  the  flag-staff  on  a  high  hill  called  "  Garrison 
Hill,"  north  of  the  present  Soldiers'  Home.     The  fort 


344  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE, 

or  block-house  was  destroyed  by  fire  about  thirty  years 
ago,  the  parade-ground  graded  off,  and  every  trace  of 
the  hero's  grave  was  lost.  Previous  to  this,  however, 
his  son,  Colonel  Isaac  Wayne,  in  1809,  caused  his  re- 
mains to  be  removed  and  reinterred  in  the  family  burial- 
ground  attached  to  St.  David's  Church  at  Radnor. 
The  very  impressive  ceremonies  which  took  place  on 
this  occasion  are  fully  described  by  Mr.  Lewis  in  the 
Supplementary  chapter  of  this  book.  In  1876  the 
empty  grave  was  discovered  at  Erie,  and  in  1879  the 
Legislature  of  this  State  appropriated  one  thousand 
dollars,  which  was  afterwards  supplemented  by  an 
additional  appropriation  of  five  hundred  dollars,  for 
the  erection  of  a  suitable  monument  at  Erie.  With 
rare  good  taste  the  committee  charged  with  the  duty 
adopted  as  a  monument  a  model  of  the  old  block-house 
in  which  he  died,  which  is  thus  described : 

"  A  new  stone  was  placed  over  the  grave,  and  over  it  was  built  as 
a  monument  to  '  Mad  Anthony's'  memory  an  exact  copy  of  the  old 
block-house  which  Wayne  himself  had  first  built  in  1791.  The 
present  one  is  made  of  squared  oak  logs  well  notched  together  at 
the  corners.  The  first  story  is  sixteen  feet  square  and  ten  feet  high, 
with  a  door  on  one  side.  The  upper  is  octagonal  in  shape,  and 
made  to  project  several  feet  over  the  lower,  thus  making  it  difficult 
of  access  except  through  the  interior  of  the  lower  room.  A  flight 
of  winding  steps  permits  of  ascent  to  the  upper  octagonal  room 
from  the  ground-floor  of  the  block-house.  The  roof  is  also  octago- 
nal, and  finished  to  a  centre  pole,  which  forms  the  flag-staff.  The 
upper  story  is  the  height  of  a  man  at  the  sides,  and  increases  with 
the  rise  of  the  roof  to  the  centre." — The  American  Architect  and 
Building  News,  vol.  xxi.  p.  159. 

The  following  is  the  inscription  on  the  monument 
erected  by  the  Society  of  the  Cincinnati  in  St.  David's 
Cemetery : 


— .___ — 


CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  INDIANS.  345 

[North  front.'] 

Major  General 

Anthony  Wayne 

was  born  at  Waynesborough 

In  Chester  County 

State  of  Pennsylvania 

A.D.  1745. 

After  a  life  of  Honor  &  Usefulness 

He  died  in  December  1 796, 

At  a  military  post 

On  the  shores  of  Lake  Erie 

Commander-in-chief  of  the  Army  of 

The  United  States. 

His  military  achievements 

Are  consecrated 

In  the  history  of  his  country 

And  in 

The  hearts  of  his  countrymen. 

His  Remains 

Are  here  Deposited. 

[South  front.] 

In  honor  of  the  distinguished 

Military  Services  of 

Major-General  Anthony  Wayne 

And  as  an  affectionate  tribute 

of  respect  to  his  Memory 

This  Stone  was  erected  by  his  Companions 

In  Arms, 

The  Pennsylvania  State  Society  of 

The  Cincinnati, 

July  4th  A.D.  1809, 

Thirty  fourth  anniversary  of 

The  Independence  of  the  United  States, 

An  event  which  constitutes  the  most 

Appropriate  Eulogium 

of  an  American  Soldier  and 

Patriot. 


346  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

Thus  died  in  the  full  maturity  of  his  powers,  and  with 
undiminished  capacity  for  further  usefulness,  Anthony 
Wayne,  true  type  and  exemplar  of  that  lofty  virtue,  of 
that  unfailing  constancy,  of  that  perfect  disinterestedness 
of  purpose,  and  of  that  knightly  valor  with  which  we 
love  to  invest  the  memory  of  our  Revolutionary  heroes. 
His  whole  active  life  was  given  ungrudgingly  to  the 
service  of  his  country.  From  the  snowy  battle-fields  of 
Canada  to  the  burning  sands  of  Florida,  there  is  no 
region  which  is  not  full  of  his  labors  in  his  country's 
cause.  Amidst  all  the  trials  and  sufferings  and  dangers 
of  the  Revolution  he  never  faltered.  He  began  his 
work  when  the  Colonies  were  feebly  struggling  against 
ministerial  oppression,  and  he  did  not  finish  it  until, 
twenty  years  later,  he  had  laid  the  solid  foundations  of 
an  empire.  As  he  lay  a-dying,  and  looked  back  over 
his  chequered  career,  full  of  difficulties  and  dangers 
through  which  he  had  been  safely  led  until  that  hour,  he 
may  well  have  thought,  as  he  knew  his  work  was  done, 
that  the  history  of  his  country  must  ever  be  resplendent 
with  the  glory  of  his  achievements,  and  that  the  hour  of 
his  death  was  the  hour  of  his  complete  and  assured 
triumph. 

When  one  reads  the  story  of  this  hero's  life  as  told 
in  his  correspondence,  and  reflects  how  little  has  been 
done  since  his  death  to  requite  his  services  or  to  honor 
his  memory,  one  is  tempted  to  ask  himself,  What  would 
have  been  his  fame  and  reward  had  he  done  for  our 
enemies  what  he  did  for  us  ?  A  contrast  with  the  fate 
of  Wolfe,  the  greatest  soldier  ever  sent  by  England  to 
America,  and  the  captor  of  Quebec,  naturally  occurs  to 
us.     Wolfe's  name  is  consecrated  in  English  song  and 


GENERAL    CONCLUSION.  347 

story.  Had  he  lived,  doubtless  a  peerage  and  large 
money  rewards  would  have  been  bestowed  upon  him  ; 
and  since  his  death  a  most  conspicuous  position  in  the 
Valhalla  dedicated  to  the  heroes  of  the  English  race 
has  been  occupied  by  him.  One  act  of  heroism  made 
his  name  famous  for  all  time  ;  and  yet  Wayne's  exploits, 
each  inspired  by  the  same  dauntless  valor,  seem  almost 
forgotten  by  his  countrymen.  Wolfe,  it  is  said,  gave 
Canada  to  England ;  but  Wayne  gave  the  whole  ter- 
ritory between  the  Ohio  and  the  Mississippi,  comprising 
four  States,  to  that  peaceful  immigration  which  has  made 
that  region  the  home  of  a  noble  civilization. 

But  it  is  more  grateful  to  consider  the  points  of 
resemblance  between  these  two  heroes  than  to  contrast 
the  manner  in  which  their  fame  has  been  preserved  by 
their  countrymen.  They  were  both  misunderstood  in 
their  lifetime  save  by  their  own  soldiers.  Wayne,  like 
Sherman,  was  called  "mad,"  and  Pitt  hoped  that  God 
would  forgive  him  for  confiding  the  interests  of  England 
on  this  continent  to  so  reckless  a  dare-devil  as  Wolfe. 
What  is  there  romantic  or  daring  about  the  exploit  of 
climbing  the  Heights  of  Abraham,  and  the  subsequent 
capture  of  Quebec,  which  is  not  paralleled  by  the  mid- 
night assault  of  Stony  Point  and  the  capture  of  that 
stronghold  ?  If  Wolfe  could  exclaim,  when  told  that 
the  French  were  fleeing,  "  I  die  happy !"  what  must  we 
think  of  Wayne,  who,  finding  himself,  as  he  supposed, 
mortally  wounded  at  Stony  Point,  begged  his  aide-de- 
camp to  carry  him  into  the  interior  of  the  fort,  that  he 
might  die  there  ?  Even  in  the  tender  emotions  of  these 
two  heroic  hearts  there  is  a  wonderful  likeness.  Wolfe, 
as  he  was  descending  the  St.  Lawrence  in  his  boat,  re- 


348  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

peated  a  portion  of  the  famous  Elegy  of  Gray,  and  said 
to  his  companions  that  he  would  rather  be  the  author  of 
that  poem  than  gain  all  the  glory  the  capture  of  Quebec 
would  give  him.  Wayne's  letter,  written  but  a  half-hour 
before  the  assault  on  Stony  Point,  with  the  evident  ex- 
pectation that  he  would  not  survive  it,  while  it  is  full 
of  tender  care  for  his  wife  and  children,  is  also  full  of 
pathetic  solicitude  for  the  fame  and  success  of  his  great 
chief,  Washington. 

There  is  no  adequate  reward  which  a  country  can 
bestow  for  the  great  deeds  of  such  men.  None  know 
better  than  they  that  "  the  paths  of  glory  lead  but  to 
the  grave."  But  let  us  not  forget  that  in  all  great  sol- 
diers the  incentive  to  great  deeds  is  the  hope  that 
their  names  and  their  memory  shall  not  be  forgotten 
by  their  countrymen. 


SUPPLEMENTARY    CHAPTER. 

[The  following  chapter  was  prepared  by  the  late  Hon.  Joseph  J. 
Lewis,  of  West  Chester,  as  the  concluding  one  of  a  memoir  of  Gen- 
eral Wayne  which  he  proposed  to  write,  but  which,  unfortunately, 
he  was  unable  to  finish.] 

If  General  Wayne  had  lived  eighteen  days  longer 
he  would  have  completed  his  fifty-second  year.  He 
died  in  the  meridian  of  his  life  and  in  the  full  maturity 
of  his  powers.  Although  he  had  been  accustomed  to 
share  with  his  men  the  hardships  and  privations  of  a 
soldier's  life,  his  general  health  had  been  uniformly 
good,  except  a  protracted  spell  of  malarial  fever  con- 
tracted in  the  swamps  of  Georgia  and  occasional  at- 
tacks of  gout.  The  first  of  these  attacks  he  experi- 
enced during  the  war  in  that  State.  Before  he  was 
forty  years  old  his  constitutional  tendency  to  the  gout, 
which  had  been  hereditary  in  one  branch  of  his  family, 
became  manifest.  Having  with  several  of  his  officers 
dined  with  a  planter  during  his  campaign  in  Georgia, 
the  party  returning  to  head-quarters  late  in  the  even- 
ing were  mistaken  for  Indians  and  were  fired  upon  by 
some  of  his  men.  A  musket-ball  struck  him  on  the 
shoulder  and  caused  a  slight  wound  and  the  loss  of  a 
few  ounces  of  blood.  This  was  immediately  followed 
by  an  attack  of  gout  in  the  great  toe  of  one  of  his 
feet.  The  disease,  having  thus  effected  a  lodgement  in 
his  system,  advanced  in  repeated  visitations  from  the 
extremities  towards  the  vitals,  and  at  length,  having 

349 


35©  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

reached  the  stomach,  put  an  end  to  his  life.  His  re- 
mains in  the  first  instance  were  interred  at  Erie.  In 
1809  the  Pennsylvania  Society  of  the  Cincinnati  deter- 
mined to  erect  a  monument  to  his  memory  in  the  ceme- 
tery of  the  church  of  St.  David's,  in  Radnor,  Delaware 
County.  In  consequence  of  this  resolution,  Colonel 
Isaac  Wayne,  the  general's  son,  visited  Erie  in  June  of 
that  year  and  caused  his  father's  remains  to  be  exhumed, 
and  they  were  removed  to  Waynesborough. 

The  4th  of  July  was  appointed  for  the  reinterment 
of  the  remains  at  St.  David's.  The  funeral  was  attended 
by  an  immense  concourse  of  people  from  Chester  and 
the  adjoining  counties,  and  by  the  Philadelphia  City 
Troop  under  the  command  of  the  mayor,  Robert  Whar- 
ton. The  procession  was  more  than  a  mile  in  length. 
An  old  soldier,  Samuel  Smiley,  who  had  served  in  the 
Pennsylvania  line  during  the  war  of  the  Revolution, 
refusing  every  means  of  conveyance  offered  him,  walked 
the  whole  distance  from  Waynesborough  to  St.  David's 
in  front  of  the  hearse.  He  took  this  way  to  show  the 
affection  with  which  he  cherished  the  memory  of  his 
beloved  commander.  The  Rev.  David  Jones  delivered 
the  funeral  oration.  He  had  been  a  guest  at  the  gen- 
eral's table  before  the  war  of  the  Revolution.  He  had 
been  his  chaplain  ;  he  had  been  with  him  in  camp,  in 
council,  and  on  battle-field ;  and  no  one  had  a  better 
opportunity  of  forming  a  proper  estimate  of  his  char- 
acter as  a  man  and  as  an  officer ;  and  he  was  enabled 
to  furnish  graphic  illustrations  of  his  theme  from  his 
own  observation.  This  he  did  with  excellent  effect. 
A  high  platform  was  erected  close  by  the  open  grave 
to  serve  as  a  stand  for  the  speaker,  and  from  this  Mr. 


SUPPLEMENTARY  CHAPTER.  351 

Jones  addressed  the  multitude.  Thirty-three  years  be- 
fore he  had  preached  within  the  church  building,  appeal- 
ing to  the  young  men  of  the  period  to  take  up  arms  in 
defence  of  their  liberties,  and  now  at  the  age  of  seventy- 
three  he  came  to  speak  of  the  merits  and  services  of 
the  hero  who  may  have  led  some  of  those  same  men 
to  victory.  The  speaker  was  himself  of  heroic  mould, 
and  his  statements  of  what  had  passed  beneath  his  eye 
had  the  value  of  history.  The  curiosity  to  hear  "  the 
old  man  eloquent"  was  universal,  and  the  interest  was 
intense.  The  people  in  a  compact  mass  crowded  around 
the  stand,  and  many  even  climbed  the  surrounding 
trees  and  sat  among  the  branches,  the  better  to  catch 
the  words  of  the  speaker.  He  spoke  particularly  of 
the  night  of  the  battle  of  Paoli,  where  he  had  himself 
narrowly  escaped  death,  and  corrected  by  his  own  rec- 
ollections of  the  events  some  erroneous  rumors  then 
current.  No  report  of  the  address,  we  believe,  is  now 
extant,  except  in  some  unimportant  particulars.  The 
day  was  extremely  hot,  but  the  heat  was  not  permitted 
to  interfere  with  the  proper  celebration  of  the  obsequies. 
It  was  without  doubt  the  intention  of  the  Pennsylvania 
Society  of  the  Cincinnati  to  dedicate  the  proposed 
monument  on  the  day  of  the  reinterment  of  the  gen- 
eral's remains.  The  date  upon  the  structure,  July  4, 
1809,  indicates  this.  Its  actual  erection  did  not  occur 
till  the  5th  of  June,  181 1,  at  which  time  the  members 
of  the  Society  attended  in  a  body,  accompanied  by  the 
Philadelphia  and  Montgomery  volunteer  cavalry,  and 
there  was  again  on  the  ground  a  very  large  number  of 
citizens. 

The  estate  which  General  Wayne  derived  from  his 


352  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

father,  according  to  the  standard  by  which  fortunes  were 
measured  in  the  ante-Revolutionary  times  in  Chester 
County,  raised  him  above  those  who  occupied  the  middle 
station  of  life,  and  if  he  had  devoted  his  attention  to 
its  improvement  he  might  with  little  effort  have  become 
wealthy.  But  his  thoughts  took  a  direction  which  gave 
other  objects  a  preference  to  pecuniary  gain.  During 
the  latter  part  of  the  year  1774  and  the  whole  of  the 
year  1775  his  time  was  much  occupied  by  duties  of  an 
official  or  semi-official  character.  This  was  especially 
the  case  while  he  was  acting  as  a  member  of  the  Com- 
mittee of  Safety.  After  he  entered  the  army  he  could 
for  a  number  of  years  give  but  little  attention  to  his 
private  affairs.  The  conveyance  from  his  father  in 
1774  of  the  Waynesbo rough  estate  made  him  at  the 
same  time  the  proprietor  of  an  extensive  tannery, 
which  had  produced  for  a  number  of  years  consider- 
able profit.  He  knew  nothing  of  the  business  of  a 
tanner,  and  was  obliged  to  trust  the  management  of  it 
to  other  hands.  His  agent,  a  Mr.  Shannon,  was  be- 
lieved to  be  capable  and  trustworthy.  Yet  under  his 
agency  General  Wayne  ascertained,  at  the  termination 
of  the  war  of  the  Revolution,  that  he  had  sustained  a 
loss  of  not  less  than  seven  thousand  pounds  (^7000). 
When  Wayne  in  1777  was  appointed  brigadier-general, 
he  considered  that  a  due  regard  to  his  official  position 
required  him  to  maintain  a  table  to  which  he  could 
invite  his  brother  officers  and  such  members  of  the 
government  as  might  occasionally  visit  the  army.  He 
accordingly  acted  upon  the  idea.  The  expense  was 
considerable,  and  it  has  been  stated  that  it  sometimes 
exceeded  his  pay,  received  as  it  was  in  depreciated 


SUPPLEMENTARY  CHAPTER.  353 

Continental  currency.  The  excess  was  necessarily 
drawn  from  his  private  income.  The  cost  he  thus  en- 
countered, however,  had  no  effect  upon  the  liberality 
with  which  he  dispensed  his  hospitality.  His  most  im- 
portant pecuniary  loss  occurred  in  consequence  of  an 
attempt  to  improve  the  lands  which  had  been  granted 
to  him  by  the  State  of  Georgia  in  consideration  of  his 
military  services*  As  large  sums  of  money  could  not 
be  obtained  on  loan  at  that  time  in  this  country,  he 
made  arrangements  with  an  agent  of  certain  bankers 
in  Holland  to  borrow  one  hundred  thousand  florins, 
and  gave  as  security  a  mortgage  on  his  Chester  County 
property,  dated  January  9,  1785.  He  drew  bills  for 
that  amount  on  the  bankers,  which  were  discounted, 
and  he  received  the  proceeds.  The  bills,  owing  to 
the  bad  faith  of  those  with  whom  he  dealt,  came  back 
protested.  This  subjected  him  to  great  annoyance  and 
embarrassment.  He  succeeded,  however,  in  overcom- 
ing his  difficulties,  and  on  the  7th  day  of  August,  1787, 
satisfaction  was  entered  on  this  mortgage.  His  im- 
provement project,  on  which  he  had  spent  considerable 
sums,  was,  however,  abandoned,  and  the  lands  were 
ultimately  disposed  of  for  less  than  the  money  he  had 
laid  out  upon  them.  The  Will  of  General  Wayne  was 
executed  at  his  head-quarters  on  the  Miami  July  14, 
1794,  when  he  was  in  daily  expectation  of  a  battle  with 
the  Indians.  It  shows  on  its  face  the  real  estate  of 
which  he  was  the  owner  at  the  date  of  the  Will,  and  we 
believe  also  at  the  time  of  his  death.  He  acquired  by 
purchase  a  valuable  tract  which  lay  adjoining  Waynes- 
borough  on  the  east,  and  this  tract  has  since  been 
considered  as  a  part  of  the  Waynesborough  farm,  and 

24 


354  MAJOR-GENERAL   WAYNE. 

passed  with  it  to  the  present  possessor.  Of  the  other 
pieces  of  property  mentioned  in  the  Will,  the  house 
on  Second  Street,  in  Philadelphia,  of  which  he  appears 
to  have  owned  a  moiety,  was  the  most  valuable.  The 
lands  in  Nova  Scotia,  and  the  several  donation  tracts 
granted  in  consideration  of  his  military  services,  had 
more  prospective  than  present  value,  and  constituted 
no  considerable  addition  to  his  fortune.  The  truth 
seems  to  be  that  although  General  Wayne  exhibited 
his  usual  energy  in  whatever  effort  was  necessary  to 
relieve  himself  from  the  pressure  of  any  existing  need, 
he  felt  no  such  interest  in  the  acquisition  of  property 
as  was  required  to  sustain  any  prolonged  struggle  in 
that  direction.  His  mind  was  too  much  occupied  with 
public  affairs  during  the  twenty-two  years  he  survived 
his  father  to  admit  of  much  attention  to  his  private 
fortune. 

He  devised  to  his  son  Isaac  (as  stated  in  his  Will)  the 
Waynesbo rough  estate,  then  increased  to  five  hundred 
acres,  a  building-lot  in  Harrisburg,  Pennsylvania,  fif- 
teen hundred  acres  of  land  granted  to  the  testator  by 
Congress  for  his  military  services,  and  a  large  tract  of 
rice-land  in  Georgia.  He  devised  to  his  son  Isaac  and 
his  daughter  Margaretta  (Mrs.  Atlee)  his  large  landed 
estate  in  Nova  Scotia;  to  his  daughter  Margaretta  a 
house  and  lot  on  Second  Street  between  Market  and 
Walnut  in  Philadelphia,  Isaac  to  release  to  her  his  in- 
terest therein,  a  tract  of  fifteen  hundred  acres  in  the 
western  part  of  Pennsylvania,  a  donation  by  the  State 
in  consideration  of  his  military  services  ;  and  he  made 
his  son  and  daughter  residuary  devisees  and  legatees. 
This  Will  was  admitted  to  probate  on  the  15th  of  Feb- 


SUPPLEMENTARY  CHAPTER.  355 

ruary,  1797,  by  the  register  of  the  city  and  county  of 
Philadelphia,  and  letters  testamentary  were  issued  to 
Isaac  Wayne.  The  other  two  executors,  Sharp  Delany 
and  William  Lewis,  Esq.,  an  eminent  lawyer  of  the 
Pennsylvania  bar,  appear  to  have  declined  the  trust. 

Some  years  after  the  general's  death,  Colonel  Isaac 
Wayne,  as  executor  of  his  father's  Will,  received  a  letter 
from  the  Treasury  Department  at  Washington,  con- 
taining a  statement  of  an  account  against  the  estate  of 
General  Wayne,  and  claiming  the  payment  of  a  balance 
of  some  five  thousand  dollars  to  the  United  States 
government.  Colonel  Wayne,  knowing  his  father's 
habits,  was  satisfied  that  he  at  the  time  of  his  death 
owed  nothing  to  the  government,  and  proceeded  to 
examine  his  private  papers.  In  them  he  found  evidence 
of  payments  made  by  the  general  for  the  use  of  the 
government  to  an  amount  considerably  exceeding  the 
balance  claimed  in  the  Treasury  statement  transmitted 
to  the  executor.  With  his  vouchers  in  hand,  he  drew 
up  an  account  and  repaired  to  Washington  with  a  view 
of  obtaining  a  settlement.  The  delays  usual  in  such 
cases  on  the  part  of  the  accounting  officers  of  the 
government  were  interposed.  At  length,  wearied  with 
waiting  on  the  slow  circumlocutory  processes  of  the 
department,  he  petitioned  Congress,  setting  out  his 
claim,  and  an  act  was  passed  January  21,  181 1,  by 
virtue  of  which,  on  the  21st  of  February  of  the  same 
year,  the  sum  due  to  the  general's  estate,  five  thousand 
eight  hundred  and  seventy  dollars  and  eighty-four  cents 
($5870.84),  was  paid. 

Although  General  Wayne's  achievements  belong  to 
the  history  of  the  country,  with  which  every  well-informed 


356  MAJOR-GENERAL   WAYNE. 

citizen  ought  to  be  familiar,  his  character,  in  one  respect 
at  least,  seems  to  be  strangely  misunderstood.  It  is  sup- 
posed by  many,  perhaps  by  a  majority  of  readers,  that 
he  was  a  sort  of  military  madcap,  a  modern  knight- 
errant,  by  whom  considerations  of  prudence  and  ex- 
pediency were  disregarded,  whose  romantic  and  chiv- 
alrous courage  sought  display  in  rash  and  perilous 
adventure,  and  whose  claim  to  distinction  rested  solely 
on  his  personal  prowess  and  contemptuous  disregard 
of  danger.  The  sobriquet  of  "Mad  Anthony"  has  been 
thought  to  have  been  justly  applied  to  him  as  indicating 
the  recklessness  with  which  he  rushed  to  an  encounter. 
One  writer  of  no  inconsiderable  celebrity  speaks  of  him 
as  a  "  constitutional  fighter,  always  ready  for  a  fray," 
without  an  intimation  that  he  had  other  qualities  which 
fitted  him  for  command.  Mr.  Irving,  in  his  "  Life  of 
Washington,"  who  rarely  mentions  the  name  of  Wayne 
without  coupling  with  it  the  odious  appellation  of  "  Mad 
Anthony,"  remarks,  "That  brave  commander  had  con- 
ducted the  war  with  a  judgment  and  prudence  little 
compatible  with  the  hare-brained  appellation  he  had 
acquired  by  his  rash  exploits  during  the  Revolution ;" 
thus  giving  us  to  understand,  without  a  semblance  of 
authority  for  the  imputation,  that  his  rashness  was 
habitual  and  his  prudence  exceptional.  When  authors 
of  eminence  write  thus  loosely  and  inconsiderately  upon 
a  subject  with  which  they  may  be  reasonably  believed 
to  have  some  acquaintance,  it  is  not  surprising  that 
readers  should  be  misled.  It  is  true  that  General 
Wayne  was  distinguished  for  his  bravery, — he  was, 
indeed,  the  "  bravest  of  the  brave  ;"  his  valor  shone 
conspicuously  in  every  battle  in  which  he  was  engaged  ; 


SUPPLEMENTARY  CHAPTER.  357 

yet  he  was  none  the  less  a  skilful  general  of  singular 
discretion  and  sobriety  of  judgment. 

He  possessed  that  rare  faculty  which  the  French  call 
the  coup  cfceily  which  consists  in  detecting,  by  a  glance 
at  the  battle-field,  the  purpose  of  an  enemy,  or  any  fault 
in  his  arrangements  of  which  advantage  may  be  taken  ; 
and  he  also  instantly,  as  if  by  intuition,  decided  how  to 
frustrate  the  enemy's  purpose.  Thus,  at  Green  Springs, 
having  been  ordered  with  a  detachment  of  seven  hun- 
dred men  to  pursue  the  rear-guard  of  the  enemy,  he 
found  himself  on  emerging  from  a  wood  within  musket- 
shot  of  the  whole  force  under  Cornwallis  drawn  up  in 
battle  array.  The  design  was  to  attack  the  American 
army,  which  was  following  in  a  loose  and  fragmentary 
way,  before  it  should  be  concentrated,  and  to  cut  it  up 
in  detail.  Wayne  instantly  comprehended  the  purpose 
of  Cornwallis  and  the  whole  peril  of  the  situation.  He 
therefore  ordered  a  charge  to  be  sounded,  and  rushed 
upon  the  British  line,  which  he  broke  and  threw  into 
confusion.  He  then  retreated  in  good  order  and  in 
such  manner  as  seemed  to  invite  pursuit.  The  Brit- 
ish general  was  utterly  disconcerted,  and,  fearing  that 
Wayne's  movement  was  a  stratagem  to  draw  him  into 
an  engagement  with  the  whole  American  army  or  to 
lead  him  into  an  ambuscade,  he  hesitated  to  move  till 
the  opportunity  to  profit  by  his  advantage  was  past. 
By  this  bold  stroke  the  object  of  Wayne  was  gained, 
and  the  American  army  was  saved  from  disaster,  if  not 
from  destruction.  The  amazing  audacity  of  the  charge 
contributed  largely  to  the  successful  result.  It  was  in- 
conceivable to  Cornwallis  why  so  small  a  body  should 
attack   ten  times  its  number,  unless  in  pursuance  of 


358  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

some  device  by  which  he  should  be  drawn  into  a  hid- 
den danger.  The  hesitation  on  his  part  was,  there- 
fore, natural  and  reasonable,  and  was  just  what  Wayne 
anticipated. 

During  his  campaign  in  Georgia,  when  marching  to 
meet  the  enemy,  he  unexpectedly  met  a  large  body  of 
British  and  Indians,  superior  to  his  own,  on  a  narrow 
causeway  over  a  swamp.  Both  parties  were  taken  by 
surprise.  Wayne,  perceiving  that  the  enemy  were  hesi- 
tating and  apparently  uncertain  how  to  meet  the  emer- 
gency, gave  them  not  a  moment  for  deliberation,  but 
charged  at  the  head  of  his  column,  and,  where  almost 
any  other  commander  would  have  deemed  himself  for- 
tunate to  escape  defeat,  gained  a  complete  victory. 
Other  instances  occurred  in  the  experience  of  the  gen- 
eral in  which  the  service  profited  by  his  exercise  of  this 
faculty,  and  established  his  claim  to  the  credit  of  superior 
generalship.  In  the  opinion  of  closet-critics,  who  know 
nothing  of  war  but  what  they  read  of  it  in  books,  such 
exploits  may  be  considered  rash,  and  they  may  be  sub- 
ject to  the  same  imputation  from  duller  minds,  who 
regard  all  enterprise  as  savoring  of  temerity.  Yet  it  is 
by  such  strokes  as  these  that  genius  is  distinguished 
from  mediocrity, — the  chief  who  is  fit  to  command  from 
one  whose  only  duty  it  ought  to  be  to  obey.  The  two 
instances  in  which  the  daring  of  Wayne  approached 
most  nearly  to  the  verge  of  unwarrantable  temerity 
were  his  assault  on  Stony  Point  and  his  attack  upon 
Cornwallis  at  Green  Springs.  Yet  the  first  was  origi- 
nally suggested  by  Washington,  who  outlined  the  plan  ; 
and  the  second  was  applauded  by  both  Washington  and 
Greene.     In  the  one,  every  step,  from  the  capture  of 


SUPPLEMENTARY  CHAPTER,  359 

the  sentinels  to  the  surrender  of  the  fort,  was  carefully 
studied,  and  every  probable  contingency  provided  for, 
and  nothing  was  left  to  be  overcome  by  force  that  could 
be  surmounted  by  strategy.  In  the  other,  the  apparent 
rashness  was  merely  a  phase  of  consummate  prudence, 
in  which  the  risk  of  a  bold  advance  was  less  than  that 
of  a  retreat. 

If  the  exploits  of  Wayne  were  rash,  as  Irving  sug- 
gests, it  is  strange  that  Washington,  who  was  a  close 
observer  and  an  excellent  judge  of  character,  failed  to 
discover  it  during  the  whole  of  the  seven  years  that  he 
served  under  him.  Upon  no  other  officer  of  his  rank 
did  the  commander-in-chief  devolve  duties  of  equal 
gravity,  and  in  no  instance  did  he  find  cause  to  com- 
plain that  his  orders  had  not  been  faithfully  and  intelli- 
gently executed.  Before  Wayne  had  been  a  year  in 
active  service  he  was  directed  by  Washington  to  lead 
the  advance  in  an  expected  collision  with  Howe  in  New 
Jersey.  At  Brandywine  he  was  stationed  at  the  ford 
to  oppose  Knyphausen,  supported  by  the  brigade  of 
Grey,  while  Washington  went  himself  with  the  bulk  of 
his  army  to  meet  Cornwallis  on  Birmingham  Heights, 
thus  committing  to  the  young  brigadier  the  maintenance 
of  a  position  of  the  highest  importance.  At  German- 
town  Wayne  led  the  attack,  and  needed  only  the  proper 
support,  which  the  ill-advised  delay  at  Chew's  house 
prevented,  to  convert  the  half-won  battle  into  a  com- 
plete and  overwhelming  victory.  At  Monmouth  he 
was  again  at  the  head  of  the  attacking  column,  and 
was  so  efficient  in  staying  the  British  advance,  after 
Lee  had  treacherously  ordered  a  retreat,  and  in  turn- 
ing the  tide  of  battle  in  favor  of  the  Americans,  as  to 


360  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

obtain  special  commendation  for  gallantry  and  good 
conduct  in  Washington's  letter  to  Congress,  while  the 
name  of  no  other  officer  is  particularly  mentioned. 
Washington's  project  for  the  assault  on  Stony  Point 
was  communicated  to  no  other  officer  than  Wayne, 
and  he  alone  was  consulted  about  that  most  daring 
and  dangerous  enterprise.1 

When  Arnold's  treason  had  struck  the  army  and  the 
country  with  consternation,  it  was  to  Wayne  that  the 
commander-in-chief  committed  the  defence  of  Stony 
Point,  the  most  important  fortified  post  on  the  Hudson, 
thus  affording  the  highest  proof  of  his  confidence. 
When  Georgia  was  overrun  by  a  large  British  force 
aided  by  several  tribes  of  hostile  Indians,  to  Wayne 
was  assigned  the  duty  of  driving  out  the  invaders,  and 
for  that  purpose  he  was  intrusted  with  an  independent 
command.  After  the  American  army  had  suffered  two 
disastrous  defeats  west  of  the  Ohio  and  had  become 
thoroughly  demoralized,  to  Wayne  was  committed  the 
duty  of  restoring  its   discipline  and  its  confidence  in 

xMr.  Irving,  in  a  foot-note  on  page  503,  vol.  iii.  of  his  "Life  of 
Washington,"  says,  "  It  is  a  popular  tradition  that  when  Washington 
proposed  to  Wayne  the  storming  of  Stony  Point  the  reply  was,  '  I'll 
storm  hell,  if you  will  only  plan  it,'  "  and  Mr.  Lossing,  in  his  "Field- 
Book  of  the  Revolution,"  repeats  the  story.  We  doubt,  neverthe- 
less, its  authenticity.  The  same  thing  substantially  has  been  told  of 
others  than  Washington  and  Wayne,  and  we  may  well  believe  that 
it  was  told  of  Wayne  merely  from  its  supposed  fitness  to  his  character. 
It  is  probable  that  we  should  never  have  heard  the  story  in  connec- 
tion with  his  name  if  he  had  not  been  called  "  Mad  Anthony,"  as 
he  never  was  chargeable  with  the  rashness  imputed  to  him,  and 
especially  as  he  was  not  asked  by  Washington  to  storm  Stony  Point, 
but  merely  to  consider  the  practicability  of  that  enterprise. 


SUPPLEMENTARY  CHAPTER.  361 

itself  and  of  protecting  a  long  line  of  settlements  along 
the  Ohio.  Either  Washington  was  mistaken  in  the 
character  of  Wayne  and  committed  to  a  rash,  "  hare- 
brained" officer  duties  requiring  the  utmost  prudence 
and  discretion  as  well  as  military  skill,  or  Mr.  Irving's 
estimate  of  Wayne  is  absurd  and  preposterous.  When 
such  alternatives  are  presented,  it  is  not  difficult  to 
decide  which  is  the  more  conformable  to  truth. 

If  Mr.  Irving  had  made  the  proper  inquiries  before 
he  ventured  a  stab  at  the  military  reputation  of  Wayne, 
he  would  have  found  that  the  general  was  as  cautious  in 
laying  his  plans  as  he  was  courageous  in  carrying  them 
into  execution  ;  that,  as  a  rule,  in  every  enterprise  in 
which  he  acted  on  his  own  judgment  he  was  justified 
by  success ;  that  when  intrusted  with  independent 
command  his  vigilance  was  never  relaxed  and  his  fore- 
cast provided  for  every  emergency,  and  every  step  by 
which  he  advanced  was  calculated  with  mathematical 
precision.  There  was,  indeed,  nothing  in  his  conduct  in 
any  instance  that  justified  the  imputation  of  rashness, 
much  less  was  it  warranted  as  a  general  characteristic. 

An  anecdote  is  told  of  Wayne  that  gives  some  sup- 
port to  the  proposition  that "  fighting  was  constitutional 
with  him."  It  is  said  that  when  summoned  to  councils 
of  war  he  usually  attended  carrying  with  him  a  book, — 
"Tom  Jones"  or  some  other  interesting  novel, — which 
he  would  read,  sitting  apart  in  a  corner  of  the  room, 
while  the  anxious  company  were  discussing  the  meas- 
ures proper  to  be  pursued.  When  they  had  severally 
given  their  opinion,  the  commander-in-chief  would  in- 
quire of  Wayne,  "  Well,  general,  what  do  you  propose 
to  do?"  "  Fight,  sir,"  is  said  to  have  been  the  invariable 


362  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

answer.  It  is  possible  that  this  anecdote  may  have 
a  basis  of  truth  so  far  as  relates  to  a  single  occasion 
when  the  circumstances  were  peculiar.  Wayne  knew 
that,  as  a  rule,  councils  of  war  never  fight.  He  was 
also  aware  that  ordinarily  their  decision  was  a  foregone 
conclusion,  and  that  the  commander-in-chief,  after  listen- 
ing with  attention  to  the  reasons  which  his  subordinates 
had  to  present,  would  be  guided  by  the  dictates  of  his 
own  judgment,  even  if  a  majority  of  the  council  should 
entertain  opinions  different  from  his,  and  Wayne  may 
have  thought  it  unnecessary  to  do  more  than  signify 
his  dissent  from  the  opinions  of  his  brother  officers. 
We  know  that  Washington  did  give  battle  repeatedly 
against  the  advice  of  his  council,  and  that  Wayne 
agreed  with  him  in  the  expediency  of  doing  so  ;  that 
Washington  called  a  council  of  war  to  decide  whether 
he  should  attack  Sir  Henry  Clinton  on  his  route  from 
Philadelphia  to  New  York  in  the  summer  of  1778,  and 
that  the  council,  true  to  the  traditional  proclivities  of 
such  bodies,  decided  in  the  negative, — Wayne  and 
Cadwalader  being  the  only  brigadiers  that  favored  the 
attack  out  of  seventeen  who  sat  in  council.  Whether 
Wayne  indicated  his  opinion  by  the  monosyllable  "  fight" 
we  are  not  told,  nor  does  it  seem  probable  that  such 
was  the  case,  as  the  question  was  one  of  great  impor- 
tance, and  he  was  deeply  interested  in  the  decision, 
which  he  foresaw  might  be  attended  by  momentous 
consequences.  The  attack  was  ordered,  and  if  he  had 
commanded  the  attacking  corps  instead  of  Lee  the 
great  probability  is  that  the  triumph  at  Yorktown 
would  have  been  anticipated  at  Monmouth,  and  the  in- 
dependence of  the  Colonies  would  have  been  secured 


SUPPLEMENTARY  CHAPTER.  363 

without  aid  from  France.  In  one  case  only,  so  far  as 
we  know,  did  Washington  and  Wayne  differ  as  to  the 
eligibility  of  striking  the  enemy,  and  that  was  when  it 
was  proposed  to  storm  the  British  fortifications  north 
of  Philadelphia.  Wayne  and  Stirling  favored  the  meas- 
ure, the  rest  of  the  council  opposed  it,  and  Washington 
after  much  hesitation  agreed  with  the  majority.  Wayne 
certainly  did  not  give  his  voice  for  fighting  at  all  hazards. 
When  first  consulted  by  Washington  about  assaulting 
Stony  Point,  he  considered  the  fortifications  too  strong 
to  take  in  that  way,  and  it  was  not  until  after  careful 
observation  and  reflection  that  he  changed  his  opinion. 
While  it  is  conceded  that  there  may  be  some  truth  in 
the  story  of  Wayne's  behavior  in  councils  of  war,  so 
far  as  regards  some  particular  instance  where  the  cir- 
cumstances were  peculiar,  it  is  much  to  be  doubted 
whether  the  whole  story  is  not  a  fabrication.  It  is  so 
suitable  to  the  character  of  a  military  madcap  that  it 
invites  the  suspicion  of  its  having  been  fabricated  to 
suit  the  absurd  sobriquet  that  has  been  applied  to 
him.  Wayne  was  not  a  man  to  treat  his  brother 
officers,  assembled  in  council  to  deliberate  on  a  grave 
subject,  with  disrespect,  much  less  was  he  disposed  to 
behave  to  his  commander-in-chief,  whom  he  revered, 
in  the  offensive  manner  described.  Wayne  was  at 
heart  a  gentleman  and  accustomed  to  genteel  associa- 
tions. He  was  the  intimate  friend  of  Dr.  Benjamin 
Rush,  John  Dickinson,  Benjamin  Franklin,  and  Robert 
Morris,  and  we  are  not  very  ready  to  believe  that  he 
had  the  manners  of  a  boor. 

The  epithet  "  Mad"  in  connection  with  the  Christian 
name  of  the  general  is  said  to  have  originated  with  a 


364  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

silly  camp-follower,  who,  by  reason  of  his  oddities  of 
speech  and  demeanor,  was  the  butt  of  the  soldiers  and 
somewhat  of  a  privileged  person  in  camp.  For  some 
misbehavior  he  was  put  under  arrest  by  order  of  the 
general.  After  his  release,  being  rallied  on  the  subject, 
he  averred  that  he  had  been  arrested  not  because  he 
had  done  anything  to  deserve  it,  but  because  Anthony 
was  mad.  "  He  was  a  *  mad  Anthony,'  and  that  was 
all  there  was  of  it."  The  word  "mad,"  in  old  English, 
is  a  synonyme  with  "angry,"  and  was  doubtless  so  used 
here.  This,  in  substance,  the  fellow  repeated  whenever 
the  matter  was  mentioned,  and  thus  the  term  "  Mad 
Anthony,"  dropped  casually  from  the  lips  of  a  simple- 
ton, obtained  some  sort  of  circulation,  and  became  used 
in  a  jocular  way  among  the  rank  and  file  of  Wayne's 
command,  but  never  in  a  sense  intending  disparage- 
ment or  disrespect.  Wayne  was  too  much  admired  and 
beloved  by  his  men  to  be  the  proper  subject  in  their 
eyes  of  an  injurious  misnomer,  and  they  would  have 
resented  any  indignity  cast  upon  his  character.1 

As  far  as  the  appellation  of  "  Mad  Anthony"  was  used 
in  the  army,  no  reference  whatever  to  him  as  a  com- 

x  An  enemy  of  Wayne,  some  years  after  his  death,  standing  by 
his  grave,  placed  his  foot  upon  it,  and  addressed  some  visitors  to 
the  spot,  saying,  "  Here  lies  the  body  of  a  scoundrel."  One  of  the 
visitors,  afterwards  a  man  prominent  in  politics  in  his  State,  who 
had  served  in  the  Pennsylvania  line  during  the  war  of  the  Revolu- 
tion, instantly,  by  a  blow  of  his  clinched  fist,  felled  the  speaker  to 
the  ground.  This  rude  demonstration  by  the  assailant  of  his  respect 
for  the  memory  of  his  old  commander  is  not  to  be  justified  even  by 
his  great  provocation,  and  yet  it  may  be  said  with  some  confidence 
that  almost  any  other  survivor  of  the  gallant  band  whom  Wayne 
had  led  in  battle  would  have  acted  in  the  same  way. 


SUPPLEMENTARY  CHAPTER.  365 

mander  was  intended  or  understood.  It  was  deemed 
to  have  a  meaning  in  no  wise  derogatory  to  him  per- 
sonally, but  rather  as  a  compliment — rugged  and  coarse, 
indeed,  but  still  a  compliment — to  those  qualities  which 
the  common  soldier  most  highly  appreciates  and  most 
truly  admires.  None  of  his  contemporaries  of  the 
Revolutionary  era  ever  charged  him  with  rashness  in 
his  exploits  or  enterprises.  The  charge  originates 
with  writers  of  books  and  of  magazine  articles  of  a 
subsequent  period,  whose  opinions  on  military  matters 
must  be  taken  with  many  grains  of  allowance.  On  such 
a  subject,  however,  the  judgment  of  Washington  may 
be  properly  considered  as  decisive  ;  and  as  he,  with  full 
knowledge  of  all  that  he  did  and  of  all  that  he  advised 
to  be  done,  found  nothing  in  his  conduct  to  disapprove, 
but  much  to  commend,  we  may  safely  conclude  that  the 
offensive  epithet  "  mad"  had  no  just  application  to  his 
character,  and  that  it  may  be  properly  relegated  to  the 
use  of  that  class  to  which  the  camp-followers  of  armies 
belong.  It  has  no  rightful  place  in  history,  for  it  repre- 
sents an  idea  which  is  false. 

The  love  of  glory  was  Wayne's  master-passion.  This 
supplied  incentives  to  action  to  which  his  high-wrought 
patriotism  gave  additional  stimulus.  He  was  jealous  of 
his  honor,  and  he  preserved  it  as  bright  and  pure  as  the 
empyrean,  and  whatever  faults  he  had  were  not  those 
of  an  ignoble  nature.  His  spoken  word  was  as  binding 
upon  him  as  his  written  bond.  His  popularity  with  the 
people,  which  was  due  mainly  to  his  valor,  was  enlivened 
by  other  qualities  which  are  usually  found  associated  in 
characters  of  heroic  type.  He  was  generous,  frank,  con- 
fiding, warm-hearted,  and  impulsive.     His  temper  was 


366  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

quick,  but  his  anger  passed  away  with  the  first  flash; 
and  though  hasty  to  take  offence,  he  was  placable,  and 
his  forgiveness  was  hearty  and  thorough.  Direct  and 
straightforward  in  his  methods,  he  despised  the  mean- 
ness of  intrigue  and  the  machinations  of  secret  cabals. 
He  preferred  to  fail  in  his  purposes  rather  than  to  ac- 
complish them  by  sinister  means.  He  was  habitually 
outspoken,  and  was  strong  and  decided  in  the  utterance 
of  his  opinions.  He  was  apt  to  indulge  in  his  criticisms 
of  the  conduct  of  public  men  with  more  freedom  than 
discretion.  His  judgment  was  nice,  accurate,  and  dis- 
criminating, and  he  was  not  easily  deceived  in  his  esti- 
mate of  those  who  came  within  the  sphere  of  his  ob- 
servation. His  unfavorable  estimate  of  some  of  his 
contemporaries  while  they  were  in  the  flush  of  an  un- 
deserved popularity  has  been  fully  ratified  by  time. 
Among  those  whom  he  denounced  early  in  the  war  as 
utterly  untrustworthy  and  corrupt  was  Benedict  Arnold, 
whose  treason,  though  a  surprise  to  many,  appeared  to 
Wayne  but  the  natural  and  logical  termination  of  a  base 
and  profligate  career.  He  long  regarded  Charles  Lee 
also  with  distrust,  although  many  believed  him  ill  used 
and  his  treachery  remained  for  many  years  unknown 
and  even  unsuspected.  Of  the  fidelity  of  another  gen- 
eral officer  to  the  cause  of  American  liberty  he  openly 
expressed  his  doubt,  and  if  that  doubt  has  not  been 
confirmed,  the  grounds  of  it  have  not  been  removed. 
He  had  many  friends  in  the  army  of  the  highest  rank 
and  of  the  most  solid  reputation,  who  were  warmly 
attached  to  him.  Among  these  were  Schuyler,  Greene, 
Lafayette,  Stirling,  Sullivan,  and  Knox.  If  he  did  not 
refrain  from  censure,  neither  did  he  withhold  his  praise, 


SUPPLEMENTARY  CHAPTER.  367 

and  where  it  was  well  deserved  he  was  liberal  and  even 
lavish  of  it.  Of  envy  and  jealousy  he  was  absolutely 
free,  though  frequently  the  object  of  both  by  reason  of 
the  conspicuous  part  he  bore  in  the  operations  of  the 
army  and  of  the  confidence  reposed  in  him  by  the  com- 
mander-in-chief. His  perceptions  were  quick,  and  his 
mind  readily  took  hold  of  the  prominent  points  of  his 
subject,  and  when  the  exigency  demanded  a  prompt 
decision  he  decided  without  hesitation  and  allowed  no 
doubt  to  embarrass  or  delay  his  action.  His  self-pos- 
session was  perfect,  and  in  every  extremity  of  danger 
it  was  fully  maintained,  and  the  severer  the  pressure 
upon  him  the  more  complete  appeared  to  be  his  com- 
mand of  his  intellectual  resources.  He  had  great  self- 
reliance,  and  to  his  resolution  once  taken  he  adhered 
with  immovable  firmness  and  tenacity.  The  idea  that 
the  freedom  with  which  he  exposed  himself  to  the  bullets 
of  the  enemy  was  due  to  his  insensibility  to  danger  is  a 
mistaken  one.  He  went  into  battle  fully  prepared  for 
whatever  might  befall  him.  In  two  instances,  at  least, 
when  about  to  engage  in  extraordinary  hazards,  he  made 
his  Will  and  wrote  farewell  letters  to  his  family,  to  be 
forwarded  in  case  of  his  fall.  At  other  times  he  re- 
minded his  children  of  the  perils  which  beset  him,  and 
of  the  probability  that  by  the  fortune  of  war  they  might 
at  any  moment  be  deprived  of  his  paternal  care.  Con- 
siderations of  this  kind,  however,  had  no  effect  upon  his 
conduct.  When  once  engaged  with  the  enemy  his  whole 
soul  was  absorbed  in  the  effort  to  obtain  success. 

It  has  been  said  of  him  that  he  was  imperious,  and, 
with  his  temperament,  habituated  to  command  and  ac- 
customed to  rely  wholly  on  himself,  it  would  be  surprising 


368  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

if  it  were  not  so.  He  had  a  strong  will,  which,  within 
the  sphere  of  his  authority,  governed  with  absolute  sway, 
bending  men  and  circumstances  to  his  purpose.  He 
was  egotistic  and  somewhat  sensitive,  and  felt  more 
keenly  than  a  wise  man  should  have  done  any  calum- 
nious statement  affecting  his  conductor  character.  He 
was  not  destitute  of  vanity,  and  he  was  too  susceptible 
to  flattery.  He  estimated  highly  the  value  of  discipline, 
and  was  not  merciful  to  those  who  voluntarily  violated 
its  rules.  He  was  well  assured  that  no  such  soldiers  as 
those  who  constituted  the  Pennsylvania  line  could  be 
made  without  severe  preparatory  training,  and  that  such 
training  was  one  of  the  necessary  means  for  securing 
efficiency.  His  severity  in  this  respect  was  not  in  his 
apprehension  a  subject  of  choice,  but  of  duty.  He  cer- 
tainly owed  to  it  much  of  his  success.  His  restless 
activity  and  unremitting  vigilance  in  the  supervision  of 
every  department  of  the  service  kept  his  subordinates 
constantly  on  the  alert.  In  his  last  campaign  as  well  as 
in  his  first,  his  keen  observant  eye  was  always  open 
to  detect  whatever  was  amiss.  During  the  winter  of 
1793-94  he  slept  on  the  ground  and  endured  the  rigors 
of  an  Ohio  winter  with  no  other  accommodations  than 
those  of  a  common  soldier,  and  he  rose  at  four  o'clock 
in  the  morning  to  visit  the  outposts  and  to  see  that 
every  sentinel  was  awake  and  in  his  proper  place.  War 
with  him  was  serious  work,  and  not  a  holiday  recreation, 
and  his  primary  concern  was  that  the  interests  of  the 
country  should  not  suffer  in  his  hands.  No  thirst  for 
revenge  could  stifle  in  his  bosom  the  instincts  of  hu- 
manity. Although  at  Stony  Point  the  cry  of  "No 
quarter  to  the   rebels !"  raised  by  Grey's  ruffians   at 


SUPPLEMENTARY  CHAPTER.  369 

Paoli,  was  still  ringing  in  his  ears,  and  the  horrors  there 
enacted  were  still  rankling  in  his  bosom,  he  would  suffer 
no  stain  of  cruelty  to  rest  on  the  American  arms,  and 
no  blow  was  struck  after  resistance  ceased.  In  deal- 
ing with  the  Indians  on  the  Miami,  while  he  carried  the 
sword  in  one  hand  he  held  out  the  olive-branch  in  the 
other,  and  when  he  had  made  himself  sure  of  victory 
he  declined  to  attack  till  every  offer  of  peace  was  re- 
jected. When  compelled  at  length  to  strike,  the  blow 
was  delivered  with  such  effect  that  it  was  unneces- 
sary to  repeat  it.  By  his  vigor  he  won  the  respect 
of  the  savage  tribes,  and  by  his  fairness  and  magna- 
nimity their  confidence.  In  the  conduct  of  this  war  his 
instructions  left  him  a  wide  discretion,  which  if  rashly 
or  injudiciously  exercised  might  have  involved  the 
country  in  a  war  with  England.  But  his  every  step 
was  marked  with  the  tact  and  prudence  becoming  a 
statesman,  and  in  no  act  of  omission  or  commission  did 
he  fail  to  realize  the  just  expectation  of  the  country. 
In  fact,  in  whatever  relation  he  stood  to  the  public  ser- 
vice during  the  whole  period  of  his  connection  with  it, 
whether  as  chief  or  subordinate,  he  was  distinguished 
above  his  peers,  and  in  whatever  conflict  he  was  en- 
gaged he  won  deserved  applause.  We  do  not  propose 
to  compare  him  with  Washington.  They  were  different 
in  many  points  of  their  respective  characters,  and  in 
some  there  were  strong  contrasts  between  them.  Both 
were  gifts  to  the  nation  from  that  beneficent  Power 
which,  from  feeble  beginnings,  led  this  nation  by  the 
hand  gradually  up  to  its  present  pitch  of  greatness. 
Though  not  equally  eminent,  each  was  peculiarly  fitted 
for  the  part  he  was  appointed  to  act  in  the  drama  of  the 

25 


370  MAJOR- GENERAL    WAYNE. 

American  Revolution,  and  we  may  as  soon  expect  to 
see  another  Wayne  as  another  Washington. 


Isaac  Wayne,  the  only  son  of  the  general,  was  born 
in  East-town,  Chester  County,  in  1768,  and  died  at 
Waynesborough,  the  old  family  seat,  on  the  25th  of 
October,  1852,  at  the  venerable  age  of  eighty-four. 
He  was  educated  at  Dickinson  College,  Pennsylvania, 
and  after  graduating  at  that  institution  he  studied  law 
under  William  Lewis,  Esq.,  in  Philadelphia.  He  was 
admitted  to  the  Philadelphia  bar  in  the  fall  of  1 794,  and 
to  the  Chester  County  bar  August  21,  1795,  and  im- 
mediately entered  upon  the  practice  of  his  profession, 
in  which  he  continued  for  eighteen  months.  At  the 
end  of  that  period,  at  the  request  of  his  father,  he 
went  to  reside  at  the  paternal  mansion,  in  order  to  at- 
tend to  the  management  of  the  Waynesborough  estate, 
which,  owing  to  the  long  absence  of  his  father  in  the 
public  service,  needed  better  care  than  that  which  was 
bestowed  by  his  tenants.  On  the  25th  of  August, 
1802,  he  married  Elizabeth  Smith,  a  young  lady  of 
excellent  family  and  of  good  estate.  Five  children 
were  the  issue  of  this  marriage.  Isaac  Wayne  was  a 
man  of  very  respectable  talents.  In  politics  he  was  a 
decided  Federalist  and  exceedingly  popular  with  his 
party.  In  1800  and  1801  he  was  elected  a  member  of 
the  Assembly.    In  1806  he  was  elected  a  member  of  the 


SUPPLEMENTARY  CHAPTER.  371 

State  Senate,  and  in  18 10  he  was  re-elected,  but  served 
only  one  year  of  his  term.  In  18 14  he  was  nomi- 
nated by  the  Federal  party  as  candidate  for  the  office 
of  governor  of  Pennsylvania,  and  also  as  a  candidate  for 
Congress  for  the  district  composed  of  the  counties  of 
Chester  and  Montgomery.  Although  he  ran  far  ahead 
of  his  ticket,  the  Democratic  majorities  in  the  State 
and  the  Congressional  district  were  too  large  to  be 
overcome.  In  1822  he  was  again  nominated  for  Con- 
gress as  one  of  the  representatives  of  Chester,  Lan- 
caster, and  Delaware  Counties,  with  James  Buchanan 
and  Samuel  Edwards  as  colleagues,  and  was  elected. 
He  declined  a  re-election  in  1824,  and  did  not  again 
enter  political  life. 

Prior  to  the  war  of  181 2  he  raised  a  regiment  of 
cavalry,  of  which  he  was  elected  colonel,  and,  when 
that  war  broke  out,  he  offered  his  services  and  those  of 
his  regiment  to  the  government.  He  was  ordered  to 
Marcus  Hook,  and  spent  the  summer  of  1814  in  Camp 
Dupont  at  that  place  when  an  attack  on  Philadelphia 
was  expected.  He  had  much  of  the  martial  spirit  of 
his  family  and  many  of  the  traits  of  character  which 
distinguished  his  father,  but  he  lacked  the  opportunity 
to  acquire  reputation  as  a  soldier.  After  the  death  of 
his  children  his  affections  reverted  to  his  father,  whose 
memory  he  cherished  with  a  devotion  amounting  almost 
to  idolatry.  In  1829  and  1830  he  published  in  "The 
Casket"  a  short  memoir  of  the  general,  in  which  he 
studiously  presented  the  most  important  of  the  docu- 
ments relating  to  his  military  career.  At  that  time 
he  destroyed  a  large  number  of  letters  relating  to  his 
private  and  family  affairs.     This  he  did,  as  he  declared, 


372  MAJOR-GENERAL    WAYNE. 

in  obedience  to  the  injunction  of  his  father,  although 
they  contained  matters  of  much  interest.  Before  he 
complied  with  his  father's  directions  he  placed  the 
papers  in  the  hands  of  the  Hon.  Charles  Miner,  his 
successor  in  Congress  and  proprietor  of  the  Village 
Record 'at  West  Chester,  with  the  request  that  he  would 
write  the  last  chapter  of  the  memoir.  While  the  papers 
were  in  Mr.  Miner's  hands,  the  writer  of  this  paragraph, 
who  was  the  legal  adviser  of  Colonel  Wayne,  was  per- 
mitted to  examine  the  papers,  and  availed  himself  of 
the  opportunity  of  doing  so,  and  afterwards  suggested 
to  Colonel  Wayne  that  he  might  reasonably  exercise 
his  discretion  as  to  the  letters  he  would  destroy,  as 
among  them  there  were  those  which  the  public  would 
be  glad  to  see,  and  which  reflected  credit  upon  his 
father's  character.  To  this  suggestion  he  replied  that 
the  request  of  his  father  he  considered  it  his  duty  to 
obey,  and  that  duty  he  would  perform  to  the  letter. 

Mr.  Miner  prepared  the  final  chapter  with  much 
care  and  pains  and  delivered  it  to  Colonel  Wayne.  It 
gave  an  accurate  and  singularly  graphic  account  of 
General  Wayne's  financial  difficulties  owing  to  his 
efforts  to  improve  his  Georgia  estate,  and  set  forth  in 
a  striking  light  his  energetic  and  honorable  character, 
and  the  masterly  manner  in  which  he  had  managed  to 
fulfil  his  engagements  and  to  preserve  his  credit  at  a 
time  when  the  industries  of  the  country  were  in  a  de- 
pressed condition  and  money  difficult  to  be  procured. 
Colonel  Wayne  gave  the  MS.  a  careful  perusal,  and 
justly  regarded  it  as  an  admirable  conclusion  to  the 
memoir.  But  he  could  not  endure  the  thought  that 
his  father's  pecuniary  troubles,  though  surmounted  by 


SUPPLEMENTARY  CHAPTER.  373 

praiseworthy  efforts,  should  be  exposed  to  the  world. 
He  therefore  burned  what  Mr.  Miner  had  written,  and 
finished  the  memoir  in  his  own  way. 

General  Wayne  had  one  daughter,  Margaretta,  who 
married  William  R.  Atlee,  a  lawyer  of  reputation.  Mrs. 
Atlee  had  one  child,  a  daughter,  Mary.  She  married 
Issachar  Evans.  She  left  one  child,  William  Evans,  to 
whom  Colonel  Wayne  devised  all  his  real  estate  and  a 
considerable  part  of  his  personal  property.  William 
Evans  having  become  the  owner  of  the  Waynesbor- 
ough  estate  (under  the  will  of  his  uncle,  Colonel  Isaac 
Wayne),  upon  application  to  the  proper  court  obtained 
a  decree  by  which  the  name  of  Evans  was  exchanged 
for  that  of  Wayne,  he  being  the  only  lineal  descendant 
of  the  general  in  the  third  generation. 


APPENDICES, 


APPENDIX  I. 


GENERAL    WAYNE  S    DIVISION    ORDERS,    20TH    DECEMBER, 

I777- 

The  following  promotions  of  Field  Officers  in  the  Penns'a  Line 
has  taken  place  Viz 

George  Nagle  Col'l  of  the  10th  Reg't. 

Henry  Bicker  Col'l  of  the  2nd  Reg't. 

Ric'd  Butler  Col.  of  the  9th  Reg't. 

Thomas  Craig  Col.  of  the  3rd  Reg't. 

Matthew  Smith  Lieut.  Col.  of  the  9th  Reg't. 

Henry  Miller  Lieut.  Col.  of  the  2nd  Reg't. 

Josiah  Harmar  Lieut.  Col.  of  the  6th. 

Thomas  Robinson  Lieut.  Col.  of  the  1st. 

Rudolph  Bruner  Lieut.  Col.  of  the  3rd. 

Stephen  Bayard  Lieut.  Col.  of  the  8th. 

Caleb  North  Lieut.  Col.  of  the  nth. 

Francis  Nichol  Major  of  the  9th  Reg't. 

Thos.  Church  Major  of  the  4th  Reg't. 

John  Hulings  Major  of  the  3rd  Reg't. 

James  Moore  Major  of  the  1st. 

Frederick  Vernon  Major  of  the  8th. 

James  Taylor  Major  of  the  5  th. 

Jeremiah  Tolbert  Major  of  the  6th  & 

Michael  Ryan  Major  of  the  10th  Reg't. 

The  Justice  done  to  the  merits  of  these  Officers  has  Open'd  the 
way  for  the  promotion  of  the  Subaltern  Officers  in  the  Respective 
Regiments  whose  bravery  and  good  Conduct  equally  Entitle  them 
to  it — the  pleasure  and  satisfaction  the  Gen'l  experiences  on  this 
Occasion  he  can  much  better  feel  than  express — it  must  Afford  the 
greatest  Satisfaction  to  a  grateful  mind  to  see  a  Corps  of  Officers 

375 


376  APPENDICES. 

Honorably  provided  for — who  has  more  than  shared  the  Danger 
and  Difficulties  of  this  hard  campaign 

The  General's  State  of  Health  as  well  as  Other  Considerations 
Require  a  little  Respite — he  hopes  soon  to  be  able  to  Rejoin  the 
Army — in  the  Interim  every  exertion  of  his  shall  be  used  to  provide 
not  only  Comfortable  Clothing — but  the  Neatest  Uniform  for  his 
Worthy  fellow  Soldiers  whose  bravery  and  Conduct  have  made  them 
formidable  to  their  foes — and  endeared  them  to  their  Country  and 
their  General — whose  greatest  Ambition  is  to  deserve  their  Esteem 
and  Confidence  and  to  share  every  vicisitude  of  fortune  with  them 

Genl.  Wayne  most  earnestly  wishes  the  Officers  in  General  to 
exert  every  power  in  Covering  themselves  and  men  in  Speediest  and 
most  Comfortable  manner  possible  &  to  pay  every  Attention  to  the 
Discipline  Health  and  Cleanliness  of  the  Soldiers — 

Col.  Broadhead  will  take  the  Command  of  the  Division  until  the 
Genl —  Returns — 

APPENDIX  II. 

ARRANGEMENT  OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  LINE  (WAYNE'S  DI- 
VISION, EIGHT  REGIMENTS),  AS  MADE  AT  WHITE  PLAINS 
IN    I778. 

First  Regiment. 

Dates  of  Commission. 

James  Chambers,  Colonel 28th  Sept'r  1776. 

Thomas  Robinson,  Lt.  Colonel 7th  June      1777. 

James  Moore — Major 20th  Sept'r    " 

Captains — 1.  James  Parr.... 9th  March  1776. 

2.  James  Hamilton 10th     "         " 

3.  Samuel  Craig 1st  October  " 

4.  Michael  Simpson 1st  Dec'r       " 

5.  James  Wilson 16th  Jan'y  1777. 

6.  William  Wilson 2nd  March    " 

Capt.  Lieutenant — Thomas  Buchannan  (Rank 

as  Capt) 1st  Oct.       1777. 

Lieutenants — 1.  John  Dougherty "  J776- 

2.  David  Zeigler 16th  Jan'y  1777. 

3.  Abraham  Skinner 13th  May       " 

4.  Benjamin  Lyon 6th  July         " 


PENNSYLVANIA   LINE  IN  1778. 


377 


First  Regiment — Continued. 

Dates  of  Commission. 

5.  John   McClellan nth  Sept'r  1777. 

6.  Aaron  Norcross 14th      "        " 

7.  Thomas  Boyd 14th  Jan'y  1778. 

8.  John  Hughes 20th  March    " 

1.  James   McFarland   (ranks  as 

Lieut) 13th  May    1777. 

2.  William  McDowell  (ranks  as 

Lieut)..,.... 6th  July         " 

3.  Edward  Crawford   (ranks  as 

Lieut) nth  Sept'r    " 

4.  David   Hammond   (ranks   as 

Lieut) 14th     "         " 

5.  Andrew  Johnston  Q  M.  (ranks 

as  Lieut) 24th  March  1778. 

6.  Joseph  Collin 18th  April  1777. 

7.  Samuel  Beard 2nd  June     1778. 

8.  Benjamin  Chambers "  " 


Ensigns — 

All    these 
rank 
as  2nd 
Lieut 'ns 
from  the 
13th  P.  R. 


Second  Regiment. 

Dates  of  Commission. 

Walter  Stewart,  Colonel 17th  June  1777. 

Henry  Miller,  Lieut.  Colonel 1st  March      " 

John  Murray,  Major 5th  Feb'y      " 

Captains — 1.  John  Marshall 13th  June  1776. 

2.  George  Tudor 13th  July       " 

3.  Jacob  Ashmead.. 6th  Sept'r      " 

4.  John  Bankson 25th    "  " 

5.  John  Patterson 1st  Jan'y  1777. 

n  6.  Samuel  Tolbert 

Capt.   Lieutenant — Peter   Gosner   (Ranks  as 

Capt) "        1778. 

Lieutenants — 1.  John  Cobea "        1777- 

2.  John  Irvine "  " 

3.  John  Stoy "  " 

4.  JacobSnider 18th  April     " 

5.  Henry  Piercy 12th  March  " 

6.  James  Morris  Jones "  " 


Date 
not 

settled 


378  APPENDICES. 


Second  Regiment — Continued. 

Dates  of  Commission. 

Lieutenants — 7.  William  Moore 1 8th  April  1777. 

8.  James  Whitehead 2nd  June  1778. 


Ensigns — 


All  here 
rank  as 
2nd 
Lieutenant 


1.  Philip  Waggoner 12th  March  1777. 

2.  JohnGugg — from  i3thRegt.ioth  April     " 

3.  James  Brickham u  " 

4.  Thomas  Norton  Q'r  M'r... 24th  April     " 

5.  John  Striker 1st  October  " 

6.  Henry  Purcell 4th       "         " 

7.  John  Park 1st  Aug  " 

8.  Patrick  Fullerton.. 13th  April     " 

9.  Jacob  De  Hart 2nd  June  1778. 

Surgeon — Benjamin  Parry 

Mate — Robert  Harris 

TJiird  Regiment. 

Dates  of  Commission. 

Thomas  Craig,  Colonel  ....  1st  August  1777. 

William  Williams,  Lt.  Col 5th  June        " 

David  Lenox — Major 8th     "  " 

Captains — 1.  Thomas  Lloyd  Moore 21st  May  1776. 

2.  James  Chrystie 9th  Aug.     " 

3.  Thomas  Butler 4th  Oct.      " 

4.  John  Reily 20th  May  1777. 

5.  Isaac  Budd  Dunn 1st  June       " 

6.  William  Craig 4th  July       " 

Capt.  Lieutenant — John  Henderson 1st  October  1776. 

Lieutenants — 1.  James  Black 3d 

2.  George  McCullouch 4th 

3.  James  Armstrong 4th 

4.  John  Marshall 10th  Jan'y    1777. 

5.  Daniel  St.  Clair 1st  April  " 

6.  Robert  King 20th  May 

7.  John  Boyd 

8.  Persival  Butler 1st  Sept. 

Ensigns —       *\  1.  Blackall  William  Ball 17th  October  1776. 

These  rank  >  2.  Andrew  Engle nth  Jan'y  1777. 

as  2ndLieuts3  3.  John  Armstrong nth  Sept.     " 


(€  tt 


it 
11 

(i 


PENNSYLVANIA   LINE  IN  1778.  379 

Third  Regiment — Continued. 

Dates  of  Commission. 

4.  John  Wigdon,  P.  M 2nd  June  1778. 

5.  Peter  Smith "  " 

6.  Richard  Fullerton "  " 

7.  Thomas  Hulings "  " 

8. 

9- 
Surgeon — James  Tate 


Fourth  Regiment. 

Dates  of  Commission. 

Captains — 1.  Evan  Edwards 23rd  March  1776. 

2.  Edward  Scull 3rd  Jan'y  1777. 

3.  William  Gray "  " 

4.  Benjamin  Fishbourne "  " 

5.  John  McGowen "  " 

6.  Benjamin  Bird "  " 

Capt.  Lieutenant — William  Henderson "  " 

Lieutenants — 1.  John  Dover "  " 

2.  David  Brown "  " 

3.  William  Sprout "  " 

4.  Edward  F.  Randolph "  " 

5.  Thomas  Campbell "  " 

6.  George  Blewer "  " 

7.  Arcurius  Beatty 2nd  June  1778. 

8.  Peter  Summers— Q  M "  " 

Ensigns  (from  Col.  Shea's) — 1.  Jacob  Weaver 

(ranks  as  2nd  Lt.) 16th  Nov.  1776. 

2.  George  Boss,  Adj't 2d  June  1778. 

3.  Gilders  Bevans "  " 

4- 

5- 
6. 

7. 
8. 

9- 
Matthew  Potar  to  be  an  Ensign  from 2d  June. 


380  APPENDICES. 

Fifth  Regiment. 

Dates  of  Commission. 

Francis  Johnston,  Colonel 27th  Sept'r  1776. 

Persifor  Frazer,  Lt.  Colonel 1st  October     " 

Christopher  Stuart,  Major 28th  Feb'y  1777. 

Captains— 1.  Benjamin  Bartholomew 2nd  October  1776. 

2.  John  Christie 23rd  October   " 

3.  Samuel  Smith 1st  March  1777.  . 

4.  William  Oldham 24th  March  " 

5.  Isaac  Seely 20th  Sep'r     " 

6.  Thomas  Bond 23rd     "        " 

Capt.    Lieutenant — Michael    Ryan    (Capt'ns 

rank) 23rd  Jan'y  1778. 

Lieutenants — 1.  Job  Vernon 1st  Jan'y  1777. 

2.  John  Bartley "  " 

3.  Levi  Griffith.. .' " 

4.  Alexander  Martin u  " 

5.  John  Harper "  " 

6.  George  North "  " 

7.  James  Forbes "  *' 

8.  James  McCullouch "  " 

Ensigns—'^  r    Andrew  Lytle 30th  Dec'r  1776. 

Rank  as     }  2#  David  Marshall 

2nd  Lieut.   V. 

3.  Bickham 2nd  June  1778. 

4.  Henry  Hankly "  " 

5. 
6. 

7. 
8. 

9- 
Surgeon —  Davidson. 


Sixth  Regiment. 

Dates  of  Commission. 

Robert  Magaw,  Colonel 3rd  Jan'y  1776. 

Josiah  Harmar,  Lt.  Colonel 6th  June  1777. 

Jeremiah  Talbot,  Major... 25th  Sept.  " 


PENNSYLVANIA   LINE  IN  1778.  381 

Sixth  Regiment — Continued. 

Dates  of  Commission. 

Captains — 1.  John  Nice 13th  June  1776. 

2.  John  Doyle 1 6th  July      " 

3.  Walter  Finney August  " 

4.  Jacob  Humphries 15th  Feb'y  1777. 

5.  Jacob  Bower "         "        " 

6.  Robert  Wilkin 28th      "        " 

Capt.  Lieutenant — Thomas  Bull  (Capt'n  Rank)  1st  Aug't        " 
Lieutenants — 1.  William  McHalton 1 1 7th  Octob'r  1776. 

2.  Richard  Collier 16th  Feb.  1777. 

3.  Isaac  Vanhorn 17th  Feb'y    " 

4.  James  Gibbon 1 8th  Feb'y    " 

5.  James  Glentworth 17th  June      " 

6.  Benjamin  Lodge  . . . nth  October  1777. 

7.  Garret  Stediford  .....12th  Oct'r  1777. 

8.  Stewart  Herbert 9th  Jan'y  1778. 

Ensigns — 1.  Thomas  Doyle  (2d  Lt.  Rank). ..1st  Jan'y  1777. 

2.  Farquhar  McPherson  (      "      )...  15th  Feb.    " 

3.  Philip  Gibbons  (      "      )... 17th  Oct'r  " 

4.  Edward  Speer  (      "      )... 7th  Feb.  1778. 

5.  John  Mackland 20th  Aug.  1777. 

6.  Charles  Macknel 23rd  Oct'r    " 

7.  Thomas  Dungan 2nd  June  1778. 

8.  James  Allen "       "        " 

9- 
Surgeon — John  McDowell. 

Seventh  Regiment. 

Dates  of  Commission. 

William  Irvine,  Colonel 9th  Jan'y  1776. 

Samuel  Hay,  Lt.  Colonel.... 2nd  Feb'y  1778. 

Francis  Mentges,  Major..... 3rd  October  1776. 

Captains — 1.  William  Alexander 1st  June  " 

2.  William  Bratton 12th  Jan'y     1777. 

3.  John  Alexander 20th  March      " 

4.  Alexander  Parker "         "  " 

5.  Samuel  Montgomery "         "  " 

6.  Andrew  Irvine 25th  Sept'r      " 


382  APPENDICES. 


Seventh  Regiment — Continued. 

Dates  of  Commission. 

Capt.  Lieutenant — William     Miller    (Capt'n 

Rank) 2nd  Feb'y  1778. 

Lieutenants — 1.  William  Lusk 20th  March  1777. 

2.  Samuel  Kennedy '*.        "  " 

3.  John  Bush "         "  " 

4.  Samuel  Bryson "        "  " 

From  13th 

Reg. — 5.  James  McMichael 20th  June  1777. 

6.  Thomas  McCoy 13th  Aug.      " 

7.  Robert  McPherson 1st  Sep'r        " 

8.  Alexander  Russel 25th  Sep'r     " 


Ensigns —  r  1.  Joseph  Torrence 20th  Jan'y    " 

2.  John  Blair "        "       " 

All    these     3-  James  Williamson 19th  March  " 

Rank       J  4-  Robert  Peble 24th  April     " 

with  2nd  I  5-  James  Milligan 1st  Sep'r        " 

Lieuts.         6.  John  McCullum 25th  Sep'r     " 

7.  John  Hughes— Q  M "        "        " 

.8.  Thomas  Alexander — B  QM...2nd  June  1778. 

9- 
Surgeon — John  Ross. 
Mate —  Berry. 

Eighth  Regiment. 

Dates  of  Commission. 

Daniel  Broadhead,  Colonel 29th  Sep'r  1776. 

Stephen  Bayard,  Lt.  Colonel 23rd  Sep'r  1777. 

Frederick  Vernon,  Major 7th  June        " 

Captains  (from  nth) — 1.  Samuel  Dawson 16th  July  1776. 

2.  Van  Swearingen.9th  Aug't     " 

3.  John  Finley "      "         * 

from  13th  Reg't — 4.  John  Clark 10th  April  1777. 

"  5.  James  F.  Moore "       "        " 

"  6.  James  Carnagan "        "        " 

Capt.  Lieutenant — Samuel  Brady 17th  July  1776. 

Lieutenants — 1.  Basil  Prather 9th  Aug't     " 

2.  John  Harding 

3.  Gabriel  Patterson 


l( 


(( 


PENNSYLVANIA   LINE  IN  1781.  383 

Eighth  Regiment— Continued.. 

from  Ilth  Dates  of  Commission. 

Reg't. — 4.  John  Stotesbury 9th  April         1777. 

from  13th. — 5.  Joseph  Brown  Lee 10th  April 

from  2d.    — 6.  William  Honyman 15th  Jan' y 

"         — 7.  Benjamin  Boyer 12th  March 

from  nth — 8.  Nathanael  Martin 30th  October     " 

Ensigns — 1.  William  Amberson  (rank  2d  Lt.)-9th  Aug't  " 

2.  Graham  (  "       )..  "       "  " 

3.  John  Crawford,  Adj't 2nd  June  1778. 

4.  Reed,  late  Paymaster "       "       " 

5- 
6. 

7. 
8. 

9- 
Surgeon — Abel  Morgan. 

APPENDIX  III. 

ARRANGEMENT    OF    THE     PENNSYLVANIA    LINE     (SIX    REGI- 
MENTS) ,  JANUARY    17,   I  7  8 1 . 

First  Regiment. 

Commissioned. 

Colonel  Daniel  Brodhead Sep'r  29,  1776. 

L't  Colonel  Thomas  Robinson June  7,     1777. 

Major  James  Moore Sep'r  20, 


(( 


Captains. 

1.  John  Davis  (of  the  9th) Novem'r  15,  1776. 

2.  John  Clark  (of  the  8th) February  28,  1777. 

3.  William  Wilson March  2,  " 

4.  Jacob  Stake  (of  the  10th) Novem'r  12,      " 

5.  David  Zugler Decem'r  8,  1778. 

6.  John  Steel  (of  the  10th) March  23,  1779. 

7.  Ebenezer  Carson  (of  the  10th).... April  1,  " 

8.  John  McClellan October  1,     " 

9.  Edward  Burke  (of  the  nth) October  2,  1780. 


384  APPENDICES. 

First  Regiment — Continued. 
Subalterns. 

Commissioned. 

i.  Lieutenants  William  Feltman  (of  the  ioth)Novem'r  2,  1777. 

2.  James  McFarland March  21,  1778. 

3.  William  McDowell March  22,       " 

4.  Edward  Crawford March  23,      " 

5.  Joseph  Banks  (of  the  10th)  ..June  2,  M 

6.  David  Hammond Decem'r  8,     " 

7.  Andrew  Johnston May  12,  1779. 

8.  Joseph  Collier  May  17,      '* 

9.  Francis  White  (of  the  10th).. August  2,    " 

10.  Robert  Martin  April  1,  1780. 

11.  Michael  Everly July*  " 

12.  James  Gamble July  18,       " 

13.  Ensign  Robert  Nesbitt  (of  the  10th) Sep'r  15,    " 

14.  Brooks  (of  the  10th) 

Surgeon  John  Rogers  Commiss'd. 

Surgeon's  Mate  John  Rague  (of  the  10th) August  19,  1778. 

Second  Regiment. 

Colonel  Walter  Stewart June  17,        1777. 

Lt.  Colonel  Caleb  North  (of  the  9th) October  23,     " 

Major  James  Hamilton December  10,  1778. 

Captains. 

1.  Joseph  McClelland  (of  the  9th) July  15,        1776. 

2.  John  Bankson Septem'r  25,    " 

3.  Samuel  Tolbert ..October  2,       " 

4.  John  Patterson January  1,     1777. 

5.  John  Pearson  (of  the  9th) September  7,    " 

6.  Joseph  Finley  (of  the  8th) October  20,      " 

7.  Andrew  Walker  (of  the  nth) January  23,  1778. 

8.  William  Lusk  (of  the  7th) May  12,  1779. 

9.  Samuel  Kennedy  (of  the  7th) April  17,  1780. 

Subalterns. 

1.  Lieutenants  Henry  Piercy March  12,  1777. 

2.  James  Whitehead 

3.  *  James  Morris  Jones 


tt       tt       n 
n       n       tt 


PENNSYLVANIA   LINE  IN  1781.  385 

Second  Regiment. — Continued. 

Commissioned. 

4.  William  Moore April  10,  1777. 

5.  Enoch  Reeves  (of  the  10th).. .March  i,  1778. 

6.  John  Striker May  1,  1779. 

7.  Henry  D.  Pursell Sept.  3,    " 

8.  Ensign  William  Munen May  19,  " 

9.  John  B.  Tilden May  28,  " 

10.  Anlavin  D.  Marcellan Sept.  21,  " 

11.  George  Le  Roy 

12.  Lts  John  Ward  (8th) April  2, 

13.  John  Holtsberry  (8th) 

Surgeon. 
Benjamin  Perry July  10,    1777. 


11        n 


Surgeon's  Mate. 
Robert  Harris August  1, 


a 


Third  Regiment. 

Colonel  Thomas  Craig August  1,  1777. 

Lt.  Colonel  Josiah  Harmar June  6,         " 

Major  William  Alexander April  17,  1780. 

Captains. 

1.  James  Christie August  9,  1776. 

2.  Isaac  B.  Dunn October  4,    " 

3.  Lawrence  Keene  (of  the  nth) January  13,  1777. 

4.  George  M.  Cully October  20,    " 

5.  Abraham  G.  Claypoole  (of  the  nth) June  10,  1778. 

6.  William  Sproat  (of  the  4th)  

7.  John  Henderson May  12,     1779. 

8.  John  Marshall August  13,   " 

9.  Samuel  Bradey  (of  the  8th) August  2,      " 

Subalterns. 

1.  Lieutenants  Daniel  St.  Clair April  1,        1777. 

2.  Percival  Butler Septem'r  1,    " 

3.  Blackall  W'm  Ball Septem'r  n,  1778. 

4.  Andrew  Engle December  20,   " 

26 


386  APPENDICES. 


Third  Regiment. — Continued. 

Commissioned. 

5.  Lieutenants  James  Pettigrew  (of  the  nth)  April  13,  1779. 

6.  John  Armstrong May  12,       " 

7.  Richard  Fullerton "      "        " 

8.  John  Wigton August  13,  " 

9.  Peter  Smith "        "    " 

10.  Jacob  Whitzel  (of  the  nth). .March  n,  1780. 

n.  Robert  Alison  (of  the  nth). .March  16,      " 

12.  Francis   Thornberry   (of  the 

nth) May  25,  " 

13.  Samuel  Read  (of  the  nth)  ...October  2,     " 

14.  Ensign  Peter  Cunningham July  1,  1779. 


Surgeon. 
Alexander  Stewart October  10,  1779. 

Surgeon's  Mate. 
Robert  Wharry June  20,  1778. 

Fourth  Regiment. 

Lt.  Colonel  William  Butler January  22,  1779. 

Major  Frederick  Vernon  (8th) June  7,  1777. 

Major  Evan  Edwards  (nth) December  16,  1778. 

Captains. 

1.  Benjamin  Fishbourne January  3,  1777. 

2.  John  Alexander  (7th) March  20,      " 

3.  Alexander  Parker  (7th) 

4.  Samuel  Montgomery  (7th) 

5.  Andrew  Irvine  (7th) 

6.  James  Carnahan  (8th) April  18,        " 

7.  Henry  Becker May  15,  1778. 

8.  William  Henderson May  16,      " 

9.  Thomas  Campbell January  1,  1781. 

Subalterns. 

1.  Lieutenants  Samuel  Bryson  (7th) March  20,    1777. 

2.  James  McMichael  (7th) June  20,  " 

3.  Garret  Stediford October  12,    " 


11  ti 

(<  (C 

li  it 


PENNSYLVANIA   LINE  IN  1781.  387 

Fourth  Regiment. — Continued. 

Commissioned. 

4.  George  Blewer May  16,  1778. 

5.  Arcurius  Beaty June  2,       " 

6.  Peter  Summers "  " 

7.  George  Boss June  4,       " 

8.  Robert  Peebles  (7th) April  15,  1779. 

9.  James  Milligan  (7th) April  16,     " 

10.  John  McCullam  (7th) "  " 

11.  John  Hughes  (7th) April  25,     " 

12.  Wilder  Bevans May  11,      " 

13.  John  Pratt 

14.  Henry  Henley 

15.  Ensign  Andrew  Henderson July  4,  1779. 

16.  John  Rose  (7th) 

17.  James  Gamble  (7th) 

18.  Ebenezer  Denny  (7th) 

Surgeon  William  Magaw June  15,  1775. 

Surgeon's  Mate  John  Wilkin 

Fifth  Regiment. 

Colonel  Richard  Butler  (9th) June  7,  1777. 

Lt.  Colonel  Francis  Mentges October  9,  1778. 

Major  Thomas  H.  Moore  (9th) May  12,  1779. 

Captains. 

1.  Thomas  B.  Bowen  (9th) September  2,  1776. 

2.  Benjamin  Bartholomew October  2,         " 

3.  John  Christie October  23,       " 

4.  Samuel  Smith March  1,      1777. 

5.  Isaac  Seely Sept'r  20,        " 

6.  Thomas  Boude Sept'r  23,        " 

7.  John  Finley  (8th) October22,     " 

8.  Job  Vernon June  13,        1779. 

9.  William  Vanleer  (9th) October  10,      " 

Subalterns. 

1.  Lieutenants  Levi  Griffith January  1,  1777. 

2.  John  Harper "  " 

3.  George  North "  " 


388  APPENDICES. 

Fifth  Regiment. — Continued. 


4 

5 
6 

7 

8 

9 

io 

ii 

12 

J3 
14. 

15 

16 

17 

iS 


Commissioned. 

Lieutenants  James  McCullough January  1,  1777. 

Andrew  Lytle ^January  20,    " 

John  McKinney  (9th) March  18,  1778. 

David  Marshall Novem'r  5,    " 

Ephraim  Douglass  (9th) January  20,  1779. 

Edward  Butler  (9th) January  28,     U 

John  Bispham February  1,     " 

Abner  M.  Dunn  (9th) May  31,  " 

Benjamin  Marshall June  13,  " 

Llewellyn  Davis  (9th) August  10,      " 

Nathaniel  Smith  (9th) 

David  McKnight  (9th) 

Ensign  James  Gilchrist July  1,  " 

Joseph  Irwin  (9th) July  20,  1780. 

Joseph  Reed  (9th) "  " 


Surgeon. 
James  Davidson April  5,  1777. 

Surgeon's  Mate. 
Richard  Alison March  16,  1778. 

Sixth  Regiment. 

Colonel  Richard  Humpton  (10th) October  1st,  1776. 

Lt.  Colonel  Stephen  Bayard  (8th) Sept'r  23,     1777. 

Major  James  Greer  (10th) October  23,     " 

Captains. 

1.  John  Doyle July  16,        1776. 

2.  Walter  Finney August  10,        " 

3.  Robert  Wilkin October  10,     " 

4.  George  Bush  (nth) January  13,  1777. 

5.  Jacob  Humphrey February  15,    " 

6.  JacobBower "  " 

7.  John  Crawford  (8th) August  10,  1779. 

8.  Robert  Patton  (10th) March  1,     1780. 

9.  Jeremiah  Jackson  (nth) March  16,      " 


LEGION  OF  THE   UNITED  STATES,  1793.       389 

Sixth  Regiment. — Continued. 
Subalterns. 

Commissioned. 

i.  Lieutenants  Edward  Hovenden February  15,  1777. 

2.  ^—— James  Gibbon  (Brevet  Capt.).  "  " 

3.  James  Glentworth "  " 

4.  Benjamin  Lodge October  n,       " 

5.  Stewart  Herbert January  9,  1778. 

6.  John  McMahon  (nth) June  1,  " 

7.  James  F.  McPherson January  15,  1779. 

8.  Samuel  Morrison  (nth) February  13,    " 

9.  Thomas  Doyle March  15,        " 

10.  John  Markham July  1,  " 

11.  William  Huston  (nth) Feb'y  24,  1780. 

12.  Second  Lt.  Edward  Spear Feb'y  7,  1778. 

13.  Ensign  Thomas  Dungan June  2,       " 

14.  Sanky  Dixon Aug't  25,  1779. 

15.  John  Humphrey "  " 

16.  John  Vankoort  (10th) Sept'r  15,  1780. 

Surgeon. 

John  McDowell February  5,  1778. 

Surgeon's  Mate. 
Ezekiel  Downey Sept.  11,  1780. 

APPENDIX  IV. 

MUSTER    ROLL   OF  THE    OFFICERS    IN   THE    LEGION   OF   THE 
UNITED    STATES,    I  793. 

Commissioned. 

Anthony  Wayne .'. Major  General. 

James  Wilkinson Brigadier  General. 

Thomas  Posey "  " 

Michael  Rudolph Adjutant  &  Inspector. 

James  O'Hara Quarter  Master. 

John  Belli Deputy  Quarter  Master. 

Caleb  Swan Paymaster. 

Richard  Allison Surgeon. 

John  Hunt Chaplain. 


39° 


APPENDICES. 


Cavalry. 

Commissioned. 

Michael  Rudolph Major 5th  March  1792. 

Henry  Captain "  "  resign'd. 

William  Winston "      8th  May. 

Robert  Miss  Campbell "      7th  October. 

William  Aylet  Lee "      25th       " 

Tarleton  Fleming Lieutenant 8th  May. 

Solomon  Van  Rensalaer "         18th  September. 

James  Taylor "         7th  October. 

Leonard  Covington "         25th      " 

John  Webb Cornet 8th  May. 

George  H.  Dunn "     1 8th  September. 

Abraham  Jones "     7th  October. 

Dan'l  Torrey "     25th      " 


Artillery. 

Henry  Burbeck Major 4th  November  1791, 

Mahlon  Ford Captain 4th  March 

John  Pierce "      15th  October 

Moses  Porter "      4th  November 

Daniel  McLane "      " 

Abimael  Youngs  Nicoll Lieutenant 4th  March 

George  Ingersoll "         " 


Staats  Morris 

George  Dembar ... 

Piercy  Pope 

Joseph  Elliot 

Ebenezer  Massey... 
Peter  L.  Van  Alen. 


.26th  July 

,5th  March  1792, 


,6th  September  1792. 


First  Sub  Legion. 

John  F.  Hamtramck Lieut.  Col.  Com- 

mand't 1 8th  Feb.  1793. 

Thomas  Doyle Major 28th  Sept'r  1792. 

Thomas  Hughes "    27th  Nov'r     " 


LEGION  OF  THE    UNITED  STATES,  1793.       391 


First  Sub  Legion — Continued. 

Rank  in 
the  Legion.  Commissioned. 

John  Pratt Captain....  3 4  March         1791. 


William  Hersey 

William  Peters 

Jacob  Kingsbery.... 

Thomas  Martin 

Thomas  Pasteur  .... 
Cornelius  R.  Swan, 

John  Jeffers 

Abner  Prior 

Asa  Hartshorne 

Jacob  Melcher. 


4 4  June 

5 4  November 

8 28  December 

9 5th  March 


1792. 


10. 


....11 23d  April 

....12 15th  May 

....13 2  June 

....15 1  September 

....16 28th  September 


Vacancy  to  be  filled  by  Ensign  Morgan  if  acquited. 
James  Clay 1  Lieutenant 28th  December  1791, 


Daniel  Britt 2 

Hamilton  Armstrong 3 

Bartholomew  Shomberg 5 

Bernard  Gaines 4 

John  Wade 6 

Ross  Bird 7 

Hastings  Marks 8 

William  H.  Harrison 9 

Robert  Hunter 10 

Lewis  Bond 11 

John  Whistler 12 

John  Morgan Ensign. 

Daniel  Bissell 3      " 

John  Michael 5      " 

Jacob  Krumer 2      " 

Henry  Montford 1      " 

Charles  Hyde 4      " 


.29th         " 

.10  January  1792. 

.5  March. 


,....23  April  1792. 
— 15th  May 
— 2  June 
....  1  Sept 
....28  Sept'r 
....27  Nov'r 
....May  1790. 
....5  March  1792. 


Second  Sub  Legion. 

David  Strong Lieut  Col.  Com- 

mand't 19th  February  1793. 

Thomas  Hunt Major 18th  Feb'y  " 


392 


APPENDICES. 


Second  Sub  Legion — Continued. 

Commissioned. 

John  Mills Major 19th  Feb'y  1793. 

John  H.  Buell "     20th     "         " 

Rich'd  Brooke  Roberts Captain  promoted.^  March  1791. 

Thomas  H.  Cushing "  "  "  " 

Rank  in 
the  Legion. 

Joseph  Shaylor "     No.  1 "  " 

Jonathan  Haskell "  2 "  " 

Bezaleel  Howe "  4  November. 

Daniel  Bradley "  " 

Cornelius  Lyman "  14 30th  July  1792. 

Richard  Trucombe  Howe...  "  X  27th  Nov.     "     dec'd. 

Richard  H.  Greaton "       18th  Feb'y  1793. 

Russell  Bissell "       19th      "         " 

Joseph  Dickinson..... "       20th      "         " 

Edward  Miller "       21st       "         u 

John  Tillinghast L,\eut'nt  promoted  4  Nov'r  1791. 


Daniel  Tilton  jun " 

Samuel  Andrews " 

John  Bird " 

Micah  McDonough " 

Edward  Turner " 

Theodore  Sedgwick " 

John  Sullivan " 

Andrew  Marschalk " 

William  Marts " 

John  Lowry u 

Andrew  McCleery " 

Samuel  Drake Ensign 

X  Felix  Long " 

Peter  Shoemaker " 

Isaac  Younghusband ' ' 


No.  1...      "  " 

promoted      "  u 

it  tt  11 

No.  2... 5th  March  1792- 

3. ..13th  July  " 

4.. .30th    "  " 

5... 2 7th  November  " 
6...i8th  Feb'y  1793. 
7. ..19th  "  " 
8.. .20th  "  " 
9...2ist  M  u 
1 1... 5  March  1792. 
it  << 

12...       "  " 

10...       "  " 


Henry  Gaither 


Third  Sub  Legion. 
....Lieut.  Col.  Com- 
mands   

Major s  March  1792. 


LEGION  OF  THE    UNITED  STATES,  i?pj.       393 
Third  Sub  Legion — Continued. 

Commissioned. 

George  M.  Bedinger Major 3  March  1792  resig'd. 

Jonathan  Cass "     21st  Feb'y  1793. 

Isaac  Guion Captain 5  March  1792. 

ZebulonPike "      "  " 

Richard  Sparks "      , 

Uriah  Springer..' "      , 

Nicholas  Hannah "      

John  Heth "      

Joseph  Kerr "      

William  Faulkner "      , 

Thomas  Lewis "      , 

William  Lewis " 

Howell  Lewis " 

John  Cummins "      

John  Reed Lieutenant 5  March  1792. 

William  McRea " 

Robert  Craig " 

Nathaniel  Huston " 

John  Boyer " 

Samuel  Vance " 

William  Smith " 

Samuel  Finley " 

William  Richard " 

Aaron  Gregg " 

John  Pothimers " 

John  Steele " 

Reason  Beall Ensign 5  March  179: 

PeterMarks "      

Samuel  Davidson "      

Charles  Wright "      

Nanning  I  Nischer "      

David  Hall  X "      

Archibald  Gray "      

Houtman  Lightner u      

Andrew  Shanklan "      


tt 

it 

tt 

a 

it 

tt 

(( 

tt 

(I 

it 

it 

it 

It 

tt 

ti 

tt 

It 

ti 

30th  June 

5  March 

tt 

1792. 
it 

tt 

ti 

it 

tt 

a 

tt 

a 

ti 

ti 

it 

a 

tt 

a 

a 

,30th  June  " 
,25th  Sept.  " 
21st  Feb'y  1793, 
5  March  1792. 

a 

a 

a 

it 

it 

tt 

ti 

a 

a 

tt 

tt 

it 

tt 

tt 

tt 

it 

394 


APPENDICES, 


Fourth  Sub  Legion. 

Commissioned. 

John  Clark Lieut   Col.   Com- 

mand't 21  February  1793. 

Thomas  Butler Major 5  March  1792. 

William  McMahan "     "         " 

*  Ballard  Smith "     ,2nd  June  " 

*  To  be  filled  by  Captain  Ballard  Smith  who  was  suspended  for  six 
months  by  the  sentence  of  a  General  Court  Martial. 

Edward  Butler Captain 5  March  1792. 

Henry  Carbery  X "        


9  June       " 
28  Decern  " 


William  Buchanan  X " 

Jacob  Slough 

Joseph  Brock 

William  Eaton 

John  Crawford 

John  Cooke 

William  Preston 

Alexander  Gibson " 

Benjamin  Price " 

Henry  De  Butts " 

Robert  Thompson Lieutenant 5  March 

Henry  B.  Towles 

Maxwell  Bines 

Daniel  T  Jenifer 

James  Glen 

William  Clarke 

James  Underhill 

William  Stedman 

Benjamin  Lockwood 

Benjamin  Strother 

William  Dwen 

Peter  Grayson 

Robert  Purdy Ensign 5  March 

Hugh  Brady " 

William  Pitt  Gassaway " 

Campbell  Smith " 

Robert  Lee " 


"  resigned. 


"  resigned. 


9  June       " 

28  Decern  " 
tt 


n 

"  deceased. 

it 


LEGION  OF  THE   UNITED  STATES,  7793.        395 
Fourth  Sub  Legion — Continued. 

Commissioned. 

Stephen  Trigge Ensign 5  March  1792. 

Patrick  Sharkey  X "      "  "resigned. 

Jonathan  Taylor "      "  " 


Surgeons. 


John  Elliot. 
John  Scott. 
John  F.  Carmichael. 
Nathan  Hay  ward. 


Elijah  Tisdale. 
Charles  Brown. 
Joseph  Philips. 
William  McCrosky. 
Frederick  Dalcho. 
William  A.  McCrea. 
Thomas  Hutchins. 
John  Sillman. 
George  Balfour. 


Surgeon's  Mates. 


James  L.  Clayton. 
Thomas  Farley. 
Joseph  Strong. 
Joseph  Andrews. 
John  C.  Wallace. 
John  Hammill. 
Charles  Watrous. 
Samuel  Boyd. 
Elihu  Lyman. 


Provisional  Ensigns  to  be  called  into  service  at  the  Discretion  of  the 
President  of  the  United  States. 


Levi  Hause. 
John  Lamson. 
Nathan  Woodward. 
Aaron  Catlin. 
Francis  Johnston  present. 
Garret  Voorhis. 
John  Wallington. 
George  Bay n ton. 
Jesse  Lukens. 
Charles  Lewis  present. 
Levi  McLane        " 


Richard  Butler  present. 
William  Davidson. 
Ferdinand  Leigh  Claiborne. 
Charles  Turner. 
Charles  Harrison. 
George  Lee  Davidson. 
Howell  Cobb. 
Edmund  Taylor  present. 
John  Bradshaw. 
Elijah  Strong  present. 
John  Brick  " 


396  APPENDICES. 


APPENDIX  V. 

STONY   POINT   DOCUMENTS. 

Fort  Montgomery  5  July  1779 
To  Col'l  Richard  Butler. 

Sir, — You  will  proceed  with  your  detachment  as  near  the  enemy 
this  evening  as  you  think  proper ;  your  own  judgement  will  best 
govern  you  in  what  mode,  or  manner  to  reconnoitre  their  situation, 
so  as  to  remain  undiscovered —  You  will  fix  on  the  most  proper 
ground  for  the  troops  to  take  post  who  are  destined  for  the  charge, 
as  also  the  point  from  which  the  feint  is  to  be  made.  Could  you 
take  a  prisoner,  or  any  person  well  acquainted  with  the  Sally  port, 
or  ports,  &  the  Saliant  angles  of  the  works  it  may  have  a  happy 
effect —  I  shall  expect  to  hear  from  you  at  Storms ;  should  you  make 
any  important  discovery,  you  will  communicate  it  the  soonest  pos- 
sible—    I  wish  you  every  happiness,  &  am  Sincerely  yours 

Signed  by  order  for  Gen'l  Wayne  J.  Archer. 

General  Wayne  to  General  Washington. 

Fort  Montgomery  10th  July  1779 

Dear  Sir, — Your  Excellency  must  have  Observed  how  wretchedly 
your  Officers  were  armed — many  of  them  without  any — of  Conse- 
quence should  they  ever  come  to  a  charge,  in  place  of  producing  an 
example  of  Fortitude  to  their  men,  they  must  Inevitably  be  the  first 
to  give  way — an  example  much  easier  adopted  by  the  Human  mind 
than  the  former — especially  by  the  private  Soldier  who  can't  con- 
ceive his  Honor  or  duty  Concerned  further  than  his  Officers  &  will 
be  governed  by  his  example  as  well  in  a  Retrograde  Manoeuvre  as  in 
a  pursuit — 

I  have  no  reason  to  doubt  the  bravery  of  any  Officer  belonging  to 
the  Corps — &  will  be  answerable  for  their  Conduct  in  every  Vicissi- 
tude of  fortune  let  them  but  be  properly  Armed — which  I  believe  is 
in  our  power  to — to  effect  as  a  considerable  Number  of  Espontoons 
were  sent  forward  to  Camp  before  I  left  Phila.  which  must  have 
Arrived —  Will  your  Excellency  be  so  obliging  as  to  Order  about 
fifty  of  the  neatest  &  best  to  this  place  with  all  possible  dispatch — 


STONY  POINT  DOCUMENTS.  397 

I  mean  to  practice  with  them  in  the  Course  of  two  or  three  days,  of 
which  you  shall  hear  further,  I  shall  also  expect  your  Excellency's 
Advice  and  Instructions  on  the  Occasion  which  shall  be  faithfully 
executed — 

Adieu  &  believe  me  yours  most 
Sincerely 

Ant'y  Wayne — 

General  Washington  to  General  Wayne. 

New  Windsor  10th  July  1779 

D'r  Sir, — Immediately  upon  receipt  of  your  letter  of  this  date  I 
ordered  the  Q.  M.  Gen'l  to  furnish  the  Espontoons  you  wrote  for, 
and  presume  you  will  get  them  in  a  day  or  two.  My  ideas  of  the 
enterprise  in  contemplation  are  these —  That  it  should  be  attempted 
by  the  light  Infantry  only,  which  should  march  under  cover  of  night 
and  with  the  utmost  secrecy  to  the  enemy's  lines,  securing  every 
person  they  find  to  prevent  discovery. — Between  one  and  two  hun- 
dred chosen  men  and  officers  I  conceive  fully  sufficient  for  the  sur- 
prise, and  apprehend  the  approach  should  be  along  the  water  on  the 
South  Side  crossing  the  Beach  &  entering  the  abbatis. — 

This  party  is  to  be  preceded  by  a  van-guard  of  prudent  and  de- 
termined men,  well  commanded  who  are  to  remove  obstructions — 
secure  the  sentries  &  drive  in  the  guard —  They  are  to  advance 
(the  whole  of  them)  with  fixed  Bayonets  and  muskets  unloaded. — 
The  officers  commanding  them  are  to  know  precisely  what  batteries 
or  particular  parts  of  the  line  they  are  respectively  to  possess,  that 
confusion  and  the  consequences  of  indecision  may  be  avoided. — 

These  parties  should  be  followed  by  the  main  body  at  a  small  dis- 
tance for  the  purpose  of  support  and  making  good  the  advantages 
which  may  be  gained — or  to  bring  them  off  in  case  of  repulse  &  dis- 
appointment— other  parties  may  advance  to  the  works  (but  not  so  as 
to  be  discovered  till  the  conflict  is  begun)  by  the  way  of  the  cause- 
way &  River  on  the  north  if  practicable,  as  well  for  the  purpose  of 
distracting  the  enemy  in  their  defence  as  to  cut  off  their  retreat. 
— These  parties  may  be  small  unless  the  access  and  approaches 
should  be  very  easy  and  safe. — 

The  three  approaches  here  mentioned  should  be  well  reconnoitred 
before  hand  &  by  persons  of  observation. 


398  APPENDICES. 

Single  men  in  the  night  will  be  more  likely  to  ascertain  facts  than 
the  best  glasses  in  the  day. 

A  white  feather  or  cockade  or  some  other  visible  badge  of  distinc- 
tion for  the  night  should  be  worn  by  our  troops,  and  a  watch-word 
agreed  on  to  distinguish  friends  from  foes. — If  success  should  attend 
the  enterprise,  measures  should  be  instantly  taken  to  prevent  if  prac- 
ticable the  retreat  of  the  garrison  by  water  or  to  annoy  them  as  much 
as  possible  if  they  attempt  it — and  the  guns  should  be  immediately 
turned  against  the  shipping  &  Verplanks  point  and  covered  if  pos- 
sible from  the  enemy's  fire — 

Secrecy  is  so  much  more  essential  to  these  kind  of  enterprises 
than  numbers,  that  I  should  not  think  it  advisable  to  employ  any 
other  than  the  light  troops —  If  a  surprise  takes  place  they  are 
fully  competent  to  the  business — if  it  does  not  numbers  will  avail 
little — 

As  it  is  in  the  power  of  a  single  deserter  to  betray  the  design — 
defeat  the  project — &  involve  the  party  in  difficulties  &  danger,  too 
much  caution  cannot  be  used  to  conceal  the  intended  enterprise  to 
the  latest  hour  from  all  but  the  principal  officers  of  your  Corps  and 
from  the  men  till  the  moment  of  execution —  Knowledge  of  your 
intention,  ten  minutes  previously  obtained,  blasts  all  your  hopes ; 
for  which  reason  a  small  detachment  composed  of  men  whose  fidelity 
you  can  rely  on  under  the  care  of  a  judicious  officer  should  guard 
every  avenue  through  the  marsh  to  the  enemy's  works  by  which  our 
deserters  or  their  spies  can  pass,  and  prevent  all  intercourse. — 

The  usual  time  for  exploits  of  this  kind  is  a  little  before  day  for 
which  reason  a  vigilant  officer  is  then  more  on  the  watch,  I  therefore 
recommend  a  midnight  hour — 

I  had  in  view  to  attempt  Verplanks  point  at  the  same  instant  that 
your  operations  should  commence  at  Stoney  Point,  but  the  uncertainty 
of  co  operating,  in  point  of  time  and  the  hazard  thereby  run  of  de- 
feating the  attempt  on  Stoney  point,  which  is  infinitely  most  impor- 
tant— the  other  being  dependent — has  induced  me  to  suspend  that 
operation. 

These  are  my  general  ideas  of  the  plan  for  a  surprise,  but  you  are 
at  liberty  to  depart  from  them  in  every  instance  where  you  think 
they  may  be  improved  or  changed  for  the  better — a  dark  night  and 
even  a  rainy  one  if  you  can  find  the  way  will  contribute  to  your 


STONY  POINT  DOCUMENTS.  399 

success —  The  officers  in  these  night  marches  should  be  extremely 
attentive  to  keep  their  men  together  as  well  for  the  purpose  of  guard- 
ing against  desertion  to  the  enemy  as  to  prevent  skulking. 

As  it  is  a  part  of  the  plan,  if  the  surprise  should  succeed  to 
make  use  of  the  enemy's  cannon  against  their  shipping  &  their 
post  on  the  other  side,  it  will  be  well  to  have  a  small  detachment 
of  artillery  with  you  to  serve  them —  I  have  sent  an  order  to  the 
Park  for  this  purpose  and  to  cover  the  design  have  ordered  down 
a  couple  of  light  field  pieces — when  you  march  you  can  leave  the 
pieces  behind — 

So  soon  as  you  have  fixed  your  plan  and  the  time  of  execution 
I  shall  be  obliged  to  you  to  give  me  notice.  I  shall  immediately 
order  you  a  reinforcement  of  light  infantry — &  more  Espontoons — 
I  am  with  great  regard 

D'r  Sir 

Y'r  most  obe't  servant 

G'o  Washington. 

Brig'r  Gen'l  Wayne — 

General  Wayne  to  General  Washington. 

Fort  Montgomery  15th  July  1779. 
1 1  OClock  A.M. 

Dear  General, — On  the  nth  Colo's  Butler  &  Febiger  and 
myself  Reconnoitred  the  Enemies  works  at  Stony  point  in  the  most 
Satisfactory  manner  possible — and  are  decidedly  of  Opinion  that 
two  real  attacks  and  one  feint  ought  to  be  made  agreeable  to  the 
Enclosed  plan  &  Disposition  which  I  now  do  myself  the  Honor  to 
transmit — by  the  Unanimous  Voice  of  the  field  Officers  present  as 
well  as  your  Excellencies  permission  I  have  ventured  to  add  the 
Second  Attack  which  is  the  Only  alteration  from  yours  of  the  tenth — 
I  perfectly  agree  with  your  Excellency  that  an  Enterprize  of  this 
Nature  don't  so  much  depend  upon  Numbers  as  on  Secrecy  & 
prowess — yet  the  Mass  of  our  Soldiery  will  derive  Confidence  from 
the  Reputation  of  Numbers — from  this  Conviction  I  have  taken  the 
Liberty  to  Order  Colo'  Ball's  Regiment  Stationed  at  Rose's  farm 
to  follow  in  my  rear  &  shall  give  out  that  the  Whole  Virginia  Line 
are  to  Support  us — it  can  have  no  bad  Effect — but  it  may  have  a 
very  happy  one. 


4oo  APPENDICES. 


I  have  taken  every  possible  precaution  to  secure  the  passes  Leading 
to  Stoney  point — for  which  purpose  I  have  detached  three  small 
parties  of  picked  men  under  prudent  &  Vigilant  Officers  with  direc- 
tion to  Approach  near  the  Revene  little  before  night  so  as  to  Recon- 
noitre &  fix  on  the  proper  places  to  plant  their  Sentries  as  soon  as 
it's  dark  also  to  secure  Certain  persons  to  serve  as  Guides 

I  shall  meet  Majr  Lee  at  Clement's  or  between  that  &  Storm's. 
I  am  pleased  at  the  prospect  of  the  day  &  have  the  most  happy 
presages  of  the  fortune  of  the  night 

adieu  my  Dear  General 

&  believe  me  with  every 
Sentiment  of  Esteem 
Your  Most  Ob't  &  Affectionat 
Hum'l  Servt. 
Ant'y  Wayne. 


General  Washington  to  General  Wayne. 

Head  Quarters  New 

Windsor  July  14th 
1779 

Dear  Sir, — I  have  reflected  on  the  advantages  and  disadvan- 
tages of  delaying  the  proposed  attempt,  and  I  do  not  know  but  the 
latter  preponderate.  You  will  therefore  carry  it  into  execution  to- 
morrow night  as  you  desire,  unless  some  new  motive  or  better  infor- 
mation should  induce  you  to  think  it  best  to  defer  it.  You  are  at 
liberty  to  choose  between  the  different  plans  on  which  we  have  con- 
versed. But  as  it  is  important  to  have  every  information  we  can 
procure,  if  you  could  manage  in  the  mean  time  to  see  Major  Lee,  it 
might  be  useful.  He  has  been  so  long  near  the  spot  and  has  taken 
so  much  pains  to  inform  himself  critically  concerning  the  post,  that 
I  imagine  he  may  be  able  to  make  you  acquainted  with  some  further 
details.  Your  interview  must  be  managed  with  caution  or  it  may 
possibly  raise  suspicion — 

I  am  D'r  Sir 

Your  most  Obed't  Serv't 

G'o  Washington 

Brigadier  General  Wayne. 


STONY  POINT  DOCUMENTS.  401 

Order  of  Battle,  July  if,  I???. 

The  troops  will  march  at  0 Clock  and  move  by  the  Right 
making  a  short  halt  at  the  Creek  or  run  next  on  this  side  Clement's 
— every  Officer  &  non  Commissioned  Officer  will  remain  with  &  be 
answerable  for  every  man  in  their  platoons,  no  Soldier  to  be  per- 
mitted to  quit  his  ranks  on  any  pretext  whatever  until  a  general  Halt 
is  made  &  then  to  be  attended  by  one  of  the  Officers  of  the  platoon. 
When  the  Head  of  the  Troops  arrive  in  the  rear  of  the  Hill  Col 
Febiger  will  form  his  Regiment  into  a  solid  Column  of  a  half  Platoon 
in  front  as  fast  as  they  come  up — Col'i  Meigs  will  form  next  in 
Febigers  rear  &  Major  Hull  in  the  rear  of  Meigs  which  will  form  the 
right  Column 

Col'l  Butler  will  form  a  Column  on  the  left  of  Febiger — &  Major 
Murfree  in  his  rear 

every  Officer  and  Soldier  is  then  to  fix  a  Piece  of  White  paper  in 
the  most  Conspicuous  part  of  his  Hat  or  Cap  as  an  Insignia  to  be 
distinguished  from  the  Enemy — 

At  the  Word  March  Col'l  Fleury  will  take  charge  of  One  Hun- 
dred &  fifty  determined  &  picked  men  properly  Officered  with  their 
arms  unloaded  &  placing  their  whole  dependance  on  the  Bayn't, 
who  will  move  about  twenty  paces  in  front  of  the  Right  Column, 
by  the  Route  1  &  enter  the  sally  port — he  is  to  detach  an  Officer 
&  twenty  men  a  little  in  front  whose  business  will  be  to  secure  the 
Sentries  &  Remove  the  Abbatis  &  Obstruction  for  the  Column 
to  pass  through  the  Column  will  follow  close  in  the  Rear  with 
shoulder'd  muskets  Led  by  Col'l  Febiger  &  Gen'l  Wayne  in  person — 
When  the  Works  are  forced — &  not  before  the  Victorious  troops  as 
they  enter  will  give  the  Watch  Word  "The  fort  is  ours"  with  Re- 
peated and  loud  voice  &  drive  the  Enemy  from  their  Works  and 
Guns  which  will  favor  the  pass  of  the  Whole  Troops —  Should  the 
Enemy  Refuse  to  Surrender — or  attempt  to  make  their  Escape  by 
Water  or  Otherwise,  effectual  means  must  be  used  to  Effect  the 
former  &  to  prevent  the  Latter. 

Col'l  Butler  will  move  by  the  Route  2,  preceded  by  One  Hundred 
men  with  fixed  Bayonets  properly  Officered  &  unloaded — at  the 
Distance  of  about  20  yards  in  front  of  the  Column  which  will  follow 
under  Col'l  Butler  with  shouldered  muskets  and  Enter  the  Sallyport 
"  C"  or  "  D."     These  Hundred  will  also  detach  a  proper  Officer  & 

27 


4o2  APPENDICES. 

twenty  men  a  little  in  front  to  Remove  the  Obstructions :  as  soon  as 
they  gain  the  Works  they  are  also  to  give  &  Continue  the  Watch 
Word — which  will  prevent  Confusion  and  mistake 

Major  Murfree  will  follow  Col'l  Butler  to  the  first  figure  3  when 
he  will  divide  a  little  to  the  Right  &  left  &  wait  the  Attack  on 
the  Right — which  will  be  his  signal  to  begin  &  keep  up  a  per- 
petual and  Galling  fire  &  endeavor  to  enter  between  &  possess  the 
works  a.  a. 

if  any  Soldier  presumes  to  take  his  musket  from  his  shoulder  or 
attempt  to  fire  or  begin  the  battle  until  ordered  by  his  proper  Officer 
he  shall  be  Instantly  put  to  death  by  the  Officer  next  him,  for  the 
Misconduct  of  one  man  is  not  to  put  the  whole  Troops  in  danger  or 
disorder — &  be  suffered  to  pass  with  life  : — after  the  troops  begin  to 
advance  to  the  works  the  strictest  silence  must  be  Observed  and  the 
closest  attention  paid  to  the  Commands  of  the  Officers — 

The  General  has  the  fullest  Confidence  in  the  bravery  &  fortitude 
of  the  Corps  that  he  has  the  happiness  to  Command — the  distin- 
guished Honor  confered  on  every  Officer  &  soldier  who  has  been 
drafted  into  this  corps  by  His  Excellency  Gen'l  Washington — the 
Credit  of  the  States  they  Respectively  belong  to,  &  their  own  Repu- 
tation will  be  such  powerful  motives  for  each  man  to  distinguish 
himself  that  the  General  can  not  have  the  least  doubt  of  a  Glorious 
Victory — &  he  hereby  most  Solemnly  Engages  to  Reward  the  first 
man  who  enters  the  works  with  five  Hundred  Dollars  &  Immediate 
Promotion ;  to  the  second  400  to  the  third  300  to  the  fourth  200  & 
to  the  fifth  100  Dollars  and  will  Represent  the  Conduct  of  every 
Officer  &  Soldier  who  distinguishes  himself  on  this  Occasion,  in  the 
most  favorable  point  of  View  to  His  Excellency  whose  Greatest 
pleasure  is  in  Rewarding  merit — 

But  shou'd  there  be  any  Soldier  so  lost  to  every  feeling  of  Honor, 
as  to  attempt  to  Retreat  one  single  foot  or  skulk  in  the  face  of  danger, 
the  Officer  next  to  him  is  Immediately  to  put  him  to  death — that  he 
may  no  longer  disgrace  the  name  of  a  Soldier,  or  the  Corps  or  State 
he  belongs  to — 

As  General  Wayne  is  determined  to  share  the  danger  of  the  night 
— so  he  wishes  to  participate  of  the  Glory  of  the  day  in  common 
with  his  fellow  Soldiers — 


STONY  POINT  DOCUMENTS.  403 

Colonel  Fleury  to  General  Wayne. 

"EXTRACT  OF  BRIGADE   LIGHT   INFANTIRY   ORDERS. 
"  15  JULY,  I779. 

"  The  general  Solemnly  engages  to  Reward  the  1st  man  who  enters 
the  work,  with  five  hundred  Dollars,  and  immediate  promotion,  to 
the  Second  400D ;  to  the  third  300D ;  to  the  4th  200D ;  to  the  5th 
100D;  &  will  Represent  the  Conduct  of  every  officer,  and  Soldier, 
who  Distinguishes  himself  on  this  occasion,  in  the  most  favourable 
point  of  view,  to  his  excellency  who  allwais  Receives  the  greatest 
pleasure  in  Rewarding  merit." 

The  following  is  an  extract  from  Col.  Fleury's  report : 
"  It  is  unanymously  acknowledged  that  the  1st  man  on  the  Rampart 
has  been 

1st Lt.  Colo.  Fleury. 

2D        Lt Knox pensylvania  Line. 

3 Serj Baker Virginia 4  wounds. 

4 Serjeant...  Spencer Virginia 2  wounds. 

5 Serjeant...  Donlop pensylvania.... 2  wounds. 

"  Dr.  General 

"  I  beg — the  money  to  which  I  am  entitled  to  be  Delivered  to  my 
men  2d.  Lt.  Knox  begs  the  same. 

"  for  my  promotion,  If  I  am  obliged  afterwards  to  Leave  my  com- 
mand in  the  L.  infantery  I  Decline  it.  but  I  would  be  very  glad  to 
Receive  from  his  excellency,  or  from  Congres  some  public  mark  of 
their  satisfaction.     My  military  fortune  at  home  Depends  on  it." 


Wayne's  Supplementary  Report  to  the  President  of  Congress. 

[From  The  Pennsylvania  Packet,  or  The  General  Advertiser  (Dunlap's),  Phila- 
delphia, Thursday,  August  26,  1779.] 

West- Point,  August  10,  1779. 
Sir, — Your  very  polite  favor  of  the  17th  ult.  with  the  extract 
of  an  act  of  Congress,  I  have  just  now  received.  The  honorable 
manner  in  which  that  respectable  Body  have  been  pleased  to  express 
their  approbation  of  my  conduct  in  the  enterprize  on  Stony- Point, 
must  be  very  flattering  to  a  young  soldier ;  but  whilst  I  experience 


4Q4  APPENDICES, 

every  sensation  arising  from  a  consciousness  of  having  used  my  best 
endeavours  to  carry  the  orders  of  my  General  into  execution,  I  feel 
much  hurt  that  I  did  not  in  my  letter  to  him  of  the  17th  of  July, 
mention  (among  other  brave  and  worthy  officers)  the  names  of  Lieut. 
Col.  Sherman,  Majors  Hull,  Murphy  and  Posey,  whose  good  con- 
duct and  intrepidity  justly  entitled  them  to  that  attention. 

Permit  me,  therefore,  thro'  your  Excellency,  to  do  them  that 
justice  now  which  the  state  of  my  wound  diverted  me  from  in  the 
first  instance :  And  whilst  I  pay  this  tribute  to  real  merit,  I  must 
not  omit  Major  Noirmont  De  Laneuville,  a  French  gentleman, 
who  (in  the  character  of  a  volunteer)  stept  amongst  the  first  for 
glory. 

I  will  only  beg  to  add,  that  every  officer  and  soldier,  belonging  to 
the  light  corps,  discovered  a  zeal  and  intrepidity  that  did  and  ever 
will  secure  success. 

lam, 

With  every  sentiment  of  esteem, 

Your  Excellency's  most  obedient  humble  servant 

Ant'y  Wayne. 
His  Excellency  John  Jay,  Esq; 
President  of  Congress. 

Published  by  Order  of  Congress, 
Charles  Thomson,  Secretary. 


Washington*  s  Official  Report  to  Congress. 

[From   The  New  Jersey  Gazette,  vol.  ii.  No.  84,  Trenton,  Wednesday,  August 

4,  I779-] 

Head-quarters,  New  Windsor,  July  21  1779 
Sir, — On  the  16th  instant  I  had  the  honour  to  inform  Congress 
of  a  successful  attack  upon  the  enemy's  post  at  Stony-Point,  on  the 
preceding  night,  by  Brigadier-General  Wayne,  and  the  corps  of 
light  infantry  under  his  command.  The  ulterior  operations  in  which 
we  have  been  engaged,  have  hitherto  put  it  out  of  my  power  to 
transmit  the  particulars  of  this  interesting  event.  They  will  now 
be  found  in  the  inclosed  report,  which  I  have  received  from  General 
Wayne.     To  the  encomiums  he  has  deservedly  bestowed  on  the 


STONY  POINT  DOCUMENTS.  405 

officers  and  men  under  his  command,  it  gives  me  pleasure  to  add, 
that  his  own  conduct  throughout  the  whole  of  this  arduous  enter- 
prize,  merits  the  warmest  approbation  of  Congress.  He  improved 
upon  the  plan  recommended  by  me,  and  executed  it  in  a  manner 
that  does  signal  honour  to  his  judgment  and  to  his  bravery.  In  a 
critical  moment  of  the  assault,  he  received  a  flesh  wound  in  the 
head  with  a  musket  ball,  but  continued  leading  on  his  men  with 
unshaken  firmness. 

I  now  beg  leave,  for  the  private  satisfaction  of  Congress,  to 
explain  the  motives  which  induced  me  to  direct  the  attempt. — 

It  has  been  the  unanimous  sentiment  to  evacuate  the  captured 
post  at  Stony-Point,  remove  the  cannon  and  stores,  and  destroy  the 
works,  which  was  accomplished  on  the  night  of  the  18th,  one  piece 
of  heavy  cannon  only  excepted.  For  want  of  proper  tackling 
within  reach  to  transport  the  cannon  by  land,  we  were  obliged  to 
send  them  to  the  fort  by  water.  The  movements  of  the  enemy's 
vessels  created  some  uneasiness  on  their  account,  and  induced  me 
to  keep  one  of  the  pieces  for  their  protection,  which  finally  could 
not  be  brought  off,  without  risking  more  for  its  preservation  than  it 
was  worth.  We  also  lost  a  galley  which  was  ordered  down  to  cover 
the  boats.  She  got  under  way,  on  her  return  the  afternoon  of  the 
1 8th.  The  enemy  began  a  severe  and  continued  cannonade  upon 
her,  from  which  having  received  some  injury,  which  disabled  her 
from  proceeding,  she  was  run  ashore.  Not  being  able  to  get  her 
afloat  till  late  in  the  flood  tide,  and  one  or  two  of  the  enemy's  ves- 
sels under  favour  of  the  night,  having  passed  above  her,  she  was  set 
on  fire  and  blown  up. 

It  is  probable  Congress  will  be  pleased  to  bestow  some  marks  of 
consideration  upon  those  officers  who  distinguished  themselves  upon 
this  occasion.  Every  officer  and  man  of  the  corps  deserves  great 
credit,  but  there  were  particular  ones  whose  situation  placed  them 
foremost  in  danger,  and  made  their  conduct  most  conspicuous. 
Lieut.  Colonel  Fleury  and  Major  Steward  commanded  the  two 
attacks.  Lieutenants  Gibbons  and  Knox  commanded  the  advance 
parties  ox  forlorn  hopes,  and  all  acquitted  themselves  as  well  as  it 
was  possible.  These  officers  have  a  claim  to  be  more  particularly 
noticed. 

Mr.  Archer,  who  will  have  the  honour  of  delivering  these  de- 


4o6  APPENDICES. 

spatches,  is  a  volunteer  Aid  to  General  Wayne,  and  a  gentleman  of 
merit.  His  zeal,  activity,  and  spirit,  are  conspicuous  upon  every 
occasion. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be, 

With  the  greatest  respect  and  esteem, 
Your  Excellency's  Most  obedient 
humble  servant 

G.  Washington. 

I  forgot  to  mention,  that  two  flags  and  two  standards  were  taken, 
the  former  belonging  to  the  garrison,  and  the  latter  to  the  17th  regt. 
These  shall  be  sent  to  Congress  by  the  first  convenient  opportunity. 

General  Wayne  to  President  Reed. 

New  Windsor  26th  July  1779 
Dear  Sir, — Your  very  polite  favor  of  the  20th  I  had  the  pleasure 
of  Rec'g  last  evening — and  am  much  honored  by  the  manner  in 
which  you  are  pleased  to  express  your  approbation  of  the  Enterprize 
against  Stoney  Point — the  particulars  of  which  you  undoubtedly  have 
seen  before  this  time 

I  think  it  my  duty  to  Inform  your  Excellency  of  the  good  Con- 
duct of  the  two  young  Gent'n  who  led  the  Van  of  each  column  & 
who  are  Entitled  to  some  marks  of  Distinction  for  an  Intrepidity  & 
Address  that  would  have  done  honor  to  the  oldest  Soldiers  Mr. 
Gibbons  of  the  6th  &  Mr.  Knox  of  the  9th  Penns'a  Regiments 

I  have  not  put  pen  to  paper  on  the  Occasion  except  to  His  Ex- 
cellency Gen'l  Washington —  Indeed  my  head  has  been  too  much 
disordered  to  attempt  it —  You  will  therefore  have  the  goodness  to 
excuse  a  seeming  neglect  &  do  me  justice  by  attributing  it  to  the 
cause  I  have  mentioned  which  will  also  apologize  for  the  shortness 
of  this 

My  best  wishes  to  Mrs  Reed  &  believe  me 
with  every  Sentiment  of  Esteem 
Your  Excellencies  most  Ob't 

&  very  Hum  Serv't 

Ant'y  Wayne. 
His  Excellency 
Gov'r  Reed. 


STONY  POINT  DOCUMENTS.  407 

Colonel  Meigs  to  General  Wayne. 
[From  the  original  manuscript.] 

Light  Infantry  Camp,  22d  Aug.  1779. 

Sir, — I  think  it  my  duty  to  inform  your  honor,  that  the  account 
contain'd  in  your  honors  letter  to  his  Excellency  of  the  Reduction 
of  Stony  Point,  is  exceptionable  to  many  Officers  in  the  Brigade — 
It  is  thought  that  as  the  Acco't  now  Stands,  the  Public  must  be  in- 
duced to  believe,  that  L't  Col'o  Fleury,  Major  Stewart,  Lieu'ts 
Gibbons  &  Knox,  forced  their  way  into  the  Works,  which  made  the 
advancing  of  the  Columns  comparatively  easy —  While  the  fact  is 
that  the  volunteers  of  the  Right  Column  did  not  Suffer  more  in 
proportion  than  the  Columns  in  General — the  Gentlemen  don't 
object  to  the  encomiums  given  in  your  honors  letter  of  any  one  of 
the  Officers  there  mention'd,  who  upon  ev'ry  principle  ought  to  be 
distinguishingly  noticed  But  think  that  there  is  the  appearance  of 
partiallity,  in  not  mentioning  any  wounded  Officer  except  L't  Colo- 
nel Hay,  whose  wounds  are  equally  honorable  &  no  more  so  than 
the  Others — the  Officer  who  voluntarily  took  charge  of  the  Petti- 
augre  on  board  of  which  were  a  considerable  part  of  the  Stores,  & 
under  a  Severe  cannonade  rowed  her  off,  it  is  thought  deserves  some 
notice  I  would  not  think  that  your  honor  would  deliberately  shew 
a  partiallity  to  any  particular  Corps  or  State.  On  the  Contrary  I 
am  convinced  that  you  are  actuated  by  Sentiments  as  great  as  the 
magnitude  of  the  cause  in  which  we  are  mutually  combin'd. 

The  multiplicity  of  matters  which  crowded  upon  your  honor  at 
the  time  you  wrote  his  Excellency,  exclusive  of  the  attention  neces- 
sary to  your  own  wound,  made  it  impossible  for  you  to  take  up  ev'ry 
circumstance  of  the  attack —  I  beg  leave  to  submit  it  to  your  honor 
Whether  the  names  of  the  other  wounded  Officers ;  &  two  or  three 
others  who  enter'd  the  Fort  nearly  at  the  same  instant  with  Col'o 
Fleury;  ought  not  to  be  mention'd  in  a  subjoin'd  account.  I 
know  they  claim  it  as  due  to  them  Since  others  are  mention'd — 
Our  feelings  in  these  matters  are  exquisite,  &  are  absolutely  neces- 
sary to  us  as  Soldiers —  The  honorable  mention  made  of  my  name 
with  the  other  Colonels  is  to  the  utmost  of  my  wishes —  As  Major 
Hull  Commanded  a  Reg't  in  the  Attack,  I  could  have  wish'd  that 
his  name  had  been  mentioned  with  the  Colonels —    A  Sincere  wish 


408  APPENDICES. 

that  the  most  cordial  harmony  may  ever  Subsist  thro :  the  States  & 
Army — and  more  particularly  in  the  Light  Corps  at  this  time,  has 
induced  me  to  write — 

I  have  the  honor  to  be 

with  great  esteem  &  respect 

your  honors  Obed't  Serv't 
R.  I.  Meigs,  Colonel 

Lieutenant-  Colonel  Sherman  to  General  Wayne. 
[From  the  original  manuscript.] 

Light  Infantry  Camp  22d  Aug.  1779 

Sir, — Can  it  be  supposed  that  the  officers  of  the  New  England 
line  are  totally  void  of  sentiment,  that  those  fine  and  delicate  feel- 
ings which  ever  distinguish  the  generous  and  manly  soul  are  inca- 
pable of  making  any  impression  on  them.  Honor  and  glory  are, 
together  with  a  desire  of  rendering  our  country  great,  happy,  and 
respectable  the  grand  incentives  to  our  continuing  in  the  army. 
And  what  can  be  more  agreeable  to  the  man  of  feeling,  or  what  can 
be  a  greater  inducement  to  urge  him  on  to  the  performance  of 
actions  great  and  hazardous,  as  well  as  glorious,  but  the  happiness 
of  his  country,  a  desire  of  the  grateful  applause  of  his  fellow  citi- 
zens, and  of  transmitting  his  name  in  an  amiable  point  of  view  to 
the  world.  These  are  the  united  motives  that  have  inspired  you  to 
tread  the  scenes  of  carnage  ;  for  no  one  will  believe  the  welfare  of 
your  country  separate  from  every  other  consideration,  was  the  only 
incentive.  The  glory  you  have  acquired  by  the  last  daring  and  well 
conducted  enterprise,  has  gained  you  a  name  which  will  be  coeval 
with  the  annals  of  american  history;  which,  perhaps,  time  herself 
will  be  unable  to  efface.  Similar  motives  you  must  think  warm  our 
bosoms,  and  stimulate  us  to  similar  actions. 

When  first  appointed  to  the  Light  Infantry  was  happy  to  hear  the 
command  was  given  to  you.  Your  brave  and  spirited  behaviour  in 
the  action  of  Monmouth  endeared  you  to  your  brethren  in  the  field, 
and  merited  the  highest  applause ;  but  your  letter  to  gen'l  Wash- 
ington on  the  reduction  of  Stony  Point,  in  the  minds  of  many 
judicious  persons,  has  in  some  measure  tarnished  the  lustre  of  your 
character,  and  rendered  your  command  less  agreeable.     However, 


STONY  POINT  DOCUMENTS.  409 

we  wish  to  believe  it  was  owing  to  the  variety  of  business  that  de- 
manded your  attention  at  that  time,  rather  than  any  other  cause — 
that  your  only  view  was  to  give  an  impartial  history,  to  state  facts 
as  they  really  were,  without  any  design  of  partiality — 

I  wish  not  to  depreciate  the  merit  of  any  officer,  neither  would  I 
presume  to  do  it,  as  it  is  descriptive  of  a  base  degenerate  mind ;  but 
I  wish,  if  any  discrimination  was  necessary  to  be  made,  that  every 
officer  might  be  noticed  according  to  his  merit  in  the  action,  and  if 
any  were  deficient  in  duty,  they  may  be  particularly  pointed  out. — 

There  appears  in  the  account  you  have  given  evident  marks  of  a 
State  partiality ;  all  distinctions  of  which  kind  I  detest,  and  ardently 
wish  they  may  be  for  ever  banished  from  the  mind  of  every  friend 
to  his  country ;  they  have  a  tendency  to  lay  a  foundation  for  future 
broils :  for  when  once  a  man  is  sensibly  injured,  if  he  is  possessed  of 
the  least  feeling  he  doth  not  soon  forget  it.  Why  cannot  we  con- 
sider ourselves  as  one  and  walk  hand  in  hand  like  brethren  ?  Are 
we  not  embarked  in  the  same  cause,  and  does  not  our  independance 
rest  on  our  united  efforts?  But  rather  than  be  injured,  rather  than 
be  trampled  upon  and  considered  as  insignificant  beings  in  the  scale 
— my  blood  boils  at  the  thought.  Nature  recoils,  and  joints  out  a 
mode,  the  only  one  of  redress — 

I  am  not  anxious  to  have  my  name  transmitted  to  publick  view, 
neither  do  I  think  any  thing  can  be  said  of  me  more  than  barely 
attending  to  duty —  I  am  not  writing  for  myself,  but  I  feel  for 
those  officers  under  my  command  as  well  as  others  who  merit  as 
much  as  those  most  distinguished  by  you. 

Duty,  separate  from  the  ties  of  friendship  is  sufficient,  to  induce 
me  to  acquaint  you  with  the  sentiments  and  uneasiness  of  many 
officers  under  your  command,  which,  perhaps,  is  more  extensive 
than  you  may  imagine.  It  is  still  in  your  power  to  place  things  in 
their  proper  channel,  to  gain  our  affection,  and  confidence,  and 
then,  when  called  into  the  field,  inspired  by  your  example,  animated 
with  a  desire  of  crowning  you  with  fresh  laurels,  every  thing  will 
conspire  to  induce  us  to  play  the  man. 

However  conspicuous  you  may  appear  in  the  eyes  of  the  world, 
you  cannot  imagin  your  reputation  is  so  firmly  established  as  never 
to  be  sullied,  and  that  the  affections  and  confidence  of  your  officers 
is  unworthy  your  consideration.     You  have  not  arrived  beyond  the 


4io  APPENDICES. 


regions  of  censure,  and  our  feelings  as  well  as  interest  require  that 
there  should  be  a  more  full  and  impartial  representation  of  facts 
than  you  have  made. — The  integrity  of  my  intentions  I  hope,  will 
apologize  for  my  troubling  you  on  this  subject. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be, 
with  the  greatest  respect, 
your  most  Obed't  Serv't 
Isaac  Sherman 

L't  Col 
Gen'l  Wayne 

General  Wayne's  Reply  to  Colonel  Meigs. 

Fort  Montgomery  23rd  Aug't  1779 

Sir, — I  was  presented  with  yours  of  yesterday  on  my  way  to  Head 
Quarters — &  as  I  sincerely  believe  your  Inducement  for  writing  that 
Letter  proceeded  from  the  motive  you  mention — I  shall  therefore 
answer  it  with  that  Candor,  which  I  hope  will  always  govern  my 
Actions  whilst  honored  with  the  Command  I  now  hold 

If  I  know  my  own  heart, — I  am  as  clear  of  Local  prejudices  as 
any  Gentleman  on  this  ground — perhaps  full  as  much  so,  as  those  who 
effect  to  suspect  me  of  it, — &  who  feel  themselves  so  much  hurt  at  my 
Letter  of  the  i/th  Ultimo  to  His  Excellency  Gen'l  Washington  on 
the  Reduction  of  Stoney  Point. 

I  have  re-examined  that  letter  with  Attention,  &  am  well  con- 
vinced that  it  contains  a  true  &  Impartial  relation  of  facts,  too  well 
known  to  admit  of  a  Contradiction, — &  that  the  mention  made  of 
such  Officers  only,  whose  particular  Commands,  Situation  or  Circum- 
stances, rendered  it  Necessary,  is  warranted  by  example,  &  founded 
upon  just  &  Military  principles — 

Let  us  suppose  for  a  moment,  that  I  was  to  name  every  Officer  who 
had — or  in  Similar  Circumstances  would  have  equally  distinguished 
himself  on  that  Occation, — I  am  confident  that  I  shou'd  have  to 
recapitulate  the  names  of  every  Officer  in  the  Corps,  otherwise  not 
have  done  justice  to  their  merit, — &  perhaps  it  would  not  have  rested 
here,  but  must  have  gone  down  to  every  Non  commissioned  Officer 
&  private, — the  Absurdity  is  too  Obvious  to  admit  of  a  serious  com- 
ment,— no  but  says  Suspicion — "  you  ought  to  have  placed  Other 
"  Officers  at  the  head  of  the  Volunteers,  and  not  have  given  one 


STONY  POINT  DOCUMENTS.  411 

"Command  to  Lieu't  Colo'  Fleury — who  was  a  frenchman,  &  not 
"  belonging  to  any  particular  State, — and  the  other  to  Major  Stew- 
"ard — a  Mary  lander,  &  the  forlorn  hope  to  Messrs  Gibbons  & 
"  Knox  who  were  Pennsylvanians" 

In  answer  to  which  I  need  only  observe — (&  it  will  strike  every 
Military  Gentleman — )  that  the  two  former  were  the  only  Field 
Officers  in  the  Corps  except  Colonels  Butler,  &  Febeger,  Lieut 
Col'o  Hay  and  Major  Posey  (who  had  other  Commands  Assigned 
them)  that  had  a  Competant,  if  any  knowledge  of  the  Situation  of 
the  Enemies  works,  or  Approaches  to  them, — and  which  they  had 
for  many  days  previous  to  the  Storm,  made  it  their  particular  busi- 
ness to  Obtain, — I  therefore  say,  that  upon  every  Principle,  Military, 
as  well  as  Prudencial,  they  ought  to  have  been  placed  at  the  Head 
of  the  Columns,  and  on  this  Ground  I  trust  I  shall  stand  justified  to 
my  General,  &  in  the  eye  of  the  World  for  my  Conduct. 

But  why  Gibbons  &  Knox, — why  are  two  Officers  belonging  to 
"  the  State  of  Penria  to  be  honored  with  the  forlorn  hopes,  &  so 
"  particularly  mentioned  to  in  your  Letter  of  the  17th  July" 

As  to  the  first,  I  am  Informed  they  Obtained  it  by  lot, — for  my 
own  part  I  did  not  even  know,  that  they  were  among  the  Volunteers 
until  they  had  taken  post  in  their  Respective  Commands. 

The  following  extract  of  a  Letter  from  His  Excellency,  added  to 
their  own  good  Conduct,  will  best  answer  the  latter. 

In  yours  of  the  16th  "you  do  not  mention  the  names  of  the  two 
"  Officers  who  led  the  Advanced  parties  to  the  two  Columns, — you 
"  will  be  pleased  to  do  it  with  all  the  Circumstances  of  Conduct,  & 
"  loss  which  they  Sustained" 

So  that  after  I  had  despatched  my  first  Letter  to  His  Excellency, 
I  again  wrote  it  over  &  Inserted  the  very  particulars  which  seem  to 
give  so  much  uneasiness — and  shou'd  Certainly  have  done  the  same 
had  they  been  Officers  belonging  to  any  Other  Stale,  than  that  of 
Penns'a 

but  why  was  not  the  Gentlemen  mentioned  who  Voluntarially  took 
charge  of  the  Boats  with  the  Ordnance  &  Stores  on  the  Evacuation 
Of  Stoney  Point, — for  the  very  reasons  already  assigned,  and  because 
every  Officer  &  Soldier  are  Generally,  &  honorably  mentioned,  in 
that  very  exceptional  Letter  to  His  Excellency,  &  because  it  is 
actually  dated  two  days  previous  to  the  Circumstance  you  allude  to 


412  APPENDICES. 

"But  why  was  not  Major  Hull  &  some  Other  field  Officers  taken 
"notice  of — they  were  not  many,  &  surely  might  have  been  men- 
"  tioned" — true,  &  I  was  not  a  little  hurt  on  account  of  the  Omis- 
sion,— but  the  politeness  of  Congress  put  it  in  my  Power  to  do  that 
justice  to  their  Merit,  which  they  certainly  deserved — &  which  you'l 
find  in  the  Enclosed  copy  of  a  Letter  to  His  Excellency  John  Jay 
Esq'r — &  which  I  flatter  myself  was  Published  by  Order  of  Congress 
previous  to  the  date  of  your's 

I  must  therefore  Request  you  to  place  this  matter  in  its  proper 
point  of  View — not  only  to  the  Officers  of  your  Regiment — but  to 
Others  who  may  have  read  my  Letters  &  Returns  with  a  Prejudiced, 
or  Inattentive  eye, — and  assure  them  that  I  wish  for  nothing  more 
than  an  Opportunity  of  Producing  a  Conviction  to  the  World  that 
I  detest  Local  Prejudices,  as  much  as  I  pity  the  man  who  would 
unjustly  suspect  me  of  them — and  that  I  hope  the  day  is  not  far 
distant  when  an  Other  Brilliant  Action  or  Actions  may  put  it  in  my 
Power — to  do  justice  to  their  Merit  and  to  recapitulate  their  good 
Conduct  on  a  former  Occation  i.e.  when  I  can  do  it  in  a  Military  way 
Interim  I  am  Your  most  Ob't 

&  very  Hum'l  Ser't 

Ant'y  Wayne. 


I  have  rec'd  a  letter  dated  yesterday  from  Lieu' t  Col'o  Sher- 
man, of  a  very  extraordinary  Nature, — which  at  a  Proper  Season  will 
require  a  very  Serious  &  particular  explanation, — for  altho'  I  don't 
wish  to  Incur  any  Gentlemans  displeasure,  yet,  I  put  up  with  no 

man's  Insults 

A.  Wayne 
Col'o  Meigs 

Colonel  Sherman  to  General  Wayne. 

Light  Infantry  Camp  24th  Aug.  1779 
Sir, — I  find  in  the  Postscript  of  your  letter  to  Col.  Meigs,  you 
think  mine  of  the  22d  instant  to  be  of  an  extraordinary  nature  ;  and 
which  will  require  a  serious  and  particular  explanation  ;  that  you 
wish  not  to  incur  the  displeasure  of  any  gentleman,  and  that  you 
mean  not  to  receive  an  insult  from  any  man. 

These  are  sentiments  which  ought  to  inspire  the  mind  of  every 
man  of  honor,  and  are  entirely  correspondent  with  my  own  feelings. 


STONY  POINT  DOCUMENTS.  413 

An  explanation  of  my  letter,  I  wish  and  am  ready  to  give  when 
required. 

To  insult  you,  I  declare  upon  my  honor,  never  was  my  intention ; 
my  view  was  to  acquaint  you  there  was  an  uneasiness  among  the  offi- 
cers of  your  command,  and  the  cause. — They  imagined  themselves 
sensibly  injured,  and  wished  you  to  be  acquainted  with  it. — I  there- 
fore wrote  you  on  the  subject,  with  an  expectation  that  matters  would 
be  adjusted  to  our  mutual  satisfaction.  I  am  sensible  that  I  expressed 
myself  with  a  good  deal  of  warmth,  arising  from  my  feelings  at  that 
time — While  on  the  one  hand,  I  considered  we  had  attended  to  duty, 
and  merited  at  least  your  notice ;  so  on  the  other,  I  thought  we  were 
viewed  of  no  consequence  in  the  Scale  of  Beings — the  thought 
awoke  all  my  sensations — it  would  have  animated  a  dead  man — So 
far  from  thinking  to  make  use  of  compulsive  measures  to  gain  redress 
that  I  can  assure  you ;  it  never  entered  my  mind. 

I  am,  with  the  greatest  Esteem 

Your  Obed  Ser't 

Isaac  Sherman. 

Gen'l  Wayne. 

Major  Hull  to  General  Wayne. 

Light  Infantry  Camp  25th  Aug't  1779 
Sir, — When  I  first  saw  your  Honours  Letters  to  his  Excellency 
giving  an  Account  of  the  Expedition  against  Stoney  Point,  no  Ar- 
guments that  I  could  use  with  myself  could  convince  me,  that  a 
Degree  of  Injustice  was  not  done  me — Lest  I  should  judge  wrong  in 
the  Matter,  I  consulted  some  of  my  Judicious  Friends  on  the  Sub- 
ject, and  found  their  Sentiments  coincided  with  mine — desirous  that 
no  Broils  should  be  created  in  the  Corps  on  my  Account,  I  pointed 
out  to  his  Excellency  with  as  much  Modesty  as  my  Situation  would 
admit,  the  Grounds  of  my  Uneasiness,  and  only  requested  Permis- 
sion to  retire  to  my  Reg't  In  Consequence  of  this  Request,  his  Ex- 
cellency was  pleased  to  send  me  a  Note,  desiring  my  Company  at 
his  Quarters  for  the  Purpose  of  giving  me  a  Satisfactory  Explanation 
of  the  Subject  of  my  Letter — I  was  happy  to  find  the  Explanation 
satisfactory,  and  have  been  made  doubly  happy  since  in  seeing  your 
Letter  of  the  10th  inst  (to  the  Presid't  of  Congress)  wherein  ample 
Justice  is  done  me,  and  the  Cause  of  the  first  Omission  clearly 


414  APPENDICES. 

pointed  out — I  am  only  unhappy  that  I  imputed  the  Neglect  to  the 
wrong  Cause,  and  am  now  firmly  persuaded  that  you  was  actuated  by 
no  other  Principles,  than  equal  and  impartial  Justice  to  your  Corps 
— I  shall  now  Sir,  consider  myself  happy  to  remain  in  your  Corps, 
and  shall  make  it  my  Study  to  cherish  &  cultivate  Harmony  & 
Union  with  my  Brother  Officers — I  have  the  Honor  to  be  with 
perfect  Esteem  your  most  Obed't  Serv't 

W'm  Hull 
[Addressed,  "Gen'l  Wayne  Present."] 

General  Wayne's  Reply  to  Major  Hull. 

Light  Infantry  Camp  Aug't  1779. 
Dear  Sir, — The  Candid  manner  in  which  you  have  in  yours  of 
this  date  deliver'd  your  Sentiments,  gives  a  Sensation  which  I  can 
much  better  feel  than  express — my  highest  Ambition  is  to  Merit  the 
Esteem  &  Confidence  of  every  Officer  of  the  Light  Corps — 

Conscious  of  the  Rectitude  of  my  Heart  I  feel  doubly  happy  in 
your  Approbation  of  my  Conduct — &  I  have  the  most  happy  pre- 
sages, that  by  Mutual  Confidence  and  a  Strict  &  due  Observance 
of  Orders  &  Discipline  this  Corps  will  produce  a  Conviction  to  the 
world  that  the  sons  of  America  deserve  to  be  free 

I  am  with  true  Regard  yours 

Most  Sincerely 

Ant'y  Wayne 

General  Wayne's  Reply  to  Major  Posey. 
[From  the  original  draught  in  General  Wayne's  autograph.] 

Fort  Montgomery  28th  August  1779 
Sir, — Your  very  Laconic  note  of  the  1 2th  Instant  enclosing  a  Copy 
of  a  long  letter  to  His  Excellency  Gen'l  Washington — I  purposely 
delayed  Answering  until  you  had  an  Opportunity  of  being  convinced 
that  I  had  made  use  of  the  first  Opening  of  doing  justice  to  your 
merit. 

You'l  now  permit  me  to  make  some  Observations  on  your  Letter 
to  his  Excellency  of  the  10th  Instant,  you  say — "  it  is  perfectly  well 
"known  to  General  Wayne  that  I  led  the  Battalion  which  Com- 


STONY  POINT  DOCUMENTS.  415 

"posed  the  front  of  the  Right  Column,  where  he  himself  marched 
"  until  we  came  to  the  beach — when  Gen'l  Wayne  left  the  Head 
"  of  the  Column  After  which  /  had  the  sole  Guidance  6°  Direction 
"of  it" 

Surely  Sir  you  had  forgot  that  the  brave  &  Intrepid  Lieut  Col'o 
Fleury  was  Immediately  in  front  of  you  who  had  some  claim  to  the 
Guidance  of  it,  &  that  if  Gen'l  Wayne  had  left  the  Column  Intirely, 
yet  a  Meigs,  a  Febiger,  a  Sherman,  &  a  Hull  (were  present)  and 
each  of  them  Senior  Officers  to  you)  would  have  claimed  the  Direc- 
tion of  it 

But  I  am  Certain  they  have  too  much  Modesty  to  assume  it — as  it's 
too  well  known  that  I  myself  continued  to  direct  it  even  after  I  had 
Rec'd  my  wound — &  that  at  the  point  of  my  Spear — I  at  least  help'd 
to  direct  the  greater  part  of  the  Column  over  the  Abbatis  and  into 
the  Works,  &  to  take  measures  to  Secure  them  &  the  Prisoners  after 
(which  perhaps  may  not  be  so  well  known  to  you  Sir  as  to  Other 
Gentlemen) 

You  ask  a  number  of  Queries  of  Gen'l  Wayne  all  tending  to 
prove  that  you  did  at  least  your  duty, — Gen'l  Wayne  answers  you, 
that  you  did, — &  that  he  highly  approved  of  your  Conduct  appears 
in  his  letter  of  the  17th  Ultimo  Viz 

11  I  should  take  up  too  much  of  your  Excellency's  time  was  I  to 
"  particularise  every  Individual  who  deserves  it  for  their  bravery 
"on  this  Occation" — (&  again) — "Its  with  the  greatest  pleasure 
"  I  acknowledge  to  your  Excellency  that  I  was  supported  in  the 
"  Attacks  by  all  the  Officers  &  Soldiers  to  the  utmost  of  my  wishes" 

but  not  content  with  this,  as  soon  as  Congress  put  it  in  my  power, 
I  did  that  further  Justice  to  your  Merit  which  I  thought  you  Entitled 
to — as  you'l  see  by  the  enclosed  Copy  of  a  Letter  to  John  Jay  Esq 
on  the  Occation. 

I  now  request  you  to  read  my  Letter  to  His  Excellency  Gen'l 
Washington  &  the  Returns  of  the  killed  &  wounded  with  an 
Attentive  &  unprejudiced  eye,  together  with  the  Copy  of  a  letter 
herewith  transmitted —  Re  examine  yours  of  the  10th  to  His  Ex- 
cellency Gen'l  Washington — &  then  consult  your  own  feelings, — 
perhaps  on  cool  reflection  you  may  find  that  there  are  some  expres- 
sions made  use  of  tending  to  hold  up  an  Idea  of  want  of  Prowess 
in  me — which  was  Supplied  by  you 


4i  6  APPENDICES. 


Was  that  really  your  Intention,  and  you  still  Continue  in  the  same 
Opinion — I  know  that  you  will  have  Candor  enough  to  acknowledge 
it, — (not  to  me  as  your  Superior  Officer)  but  to  me  as  a  Private 
Gentleman  very  tenacious  of  my  Honor, — which  honor  is  now 
plighted  to  meet  you  on  that  ground  only. 

But  should  you  have  no  Intention  to  cast  a  Shade  on  my  Military 
Character  (as  a  Gentleman  of  those  nice  feelings  which  I  believe 
you  to  possess) — I  now  call  on  you  to  place  that  matter  in  a  proper 
point  of  View 

Interim  I  am  with  due  Esteem 
Your  most  Hum'l  Ser't 

Ant'y  Wayne 
Major  Posey 

APPENDIX  VI. 

Description  of  the  Medals  voted  by  Congress  for  the  Capture  of  Stony 

Point. 

The  following  descriptions  are  from  Dr.  Mease's  Description  of 
some  Medals,  etc.,  in  the  Collections  of  the  Massachusetts  Historical 
Society,  Third  Series,  vol.  iv.  pp.  301-303. 

General  Wayne's.  "Device.  An  Indian  Queen  crowned;  a 
quiver  on  her  back,  and  wearing  a  short  apron  of  feathers ;  a  mantle 
hangs  from  her  waist  behind :  the  upper  end  of  the  mantle  appears 
as  if  passed  through  the  girdle  of  her  apron,  and  hangs  gracefully 
by  her  left  side.  She  is  presenting,  with  her  right  hand,  a  wreath 
to  General  Wayne,  who  receives  it  gracefully.  In  her  left  hand, 
the  Queen  is  holding  up  a  crown  towards  the  General.  On  her 
left,  and  at  her  feet,  an  alligator  is  stretched  out.  She  stands  on 
a  bow;  a  shield,  with  the  American  stripes,  rests  against  her  left 
knee. 

"Legend.  Antonio  Wayne,  Duci  Exercitus  Comitia  Ameri- 
cana. 

"Reverse. — Device.  A  fort  with  two  turrets,  on  the  top  of  a  hill; 
the  British  flag  flying :  troops  in  single  or  Indian  file,  advancing  in 
the  front  and  rear  up  the  hill :  numbers  lying  at  the  bottom.  Troops 
advancing  in  front,  at  a  distance,  on  the  edge  of  the  river :  another 


MEDALS    VOTED  BY  CONGRESS.  4*7 

party  to  the  right  of  the  fort.  A  piece  of  artillery  posted  on  the 
plain,  so  as  to  bear  upon  the  fort :  ammunition  on  the  ground :  six 
vessels  in  the  river. 

"  Legend.  Stony  Point  Expugnatum. 

"Exergue.  XV  Jul.  MDCCLXXIX." 

It  is  said  of  this  medal,  in  another  place  in  the  same  volume  (p. 
302),  that  it  'Ms  superbly  executed,  and  most  tastefully  designed. 
The  description  is  taken  from  the  original  in  the  possession  of 
General  Wayne's  son.     It  weighs  63  dwt.  18  grains." 

Lieutenant-Colonel  Fleury's.  "Device.  A  soldier  helmetted 
and  standing  against  the  ruins  of  a  fort :  his  right  hand  extended, 
holding  a  sword  upright :  the  staff  of  a  stand  of  colours  reversed  in 
his  left :  the  colours  under  his  feet :  his  right  knee  drawn  up,  as  if 
in  the  act  of  stamping  on  them. 

"Legend.  Virtutis  Et  Audacle  Monum.  Et  Premium  D.  De 
Fleury  Equiti  Gallo  Primo  Super  Muros  Resp.  Americ.  D.  D. 

"  Reverse.  Two  water  batteries,  three  guns  each :  one  battery 
firing  at  a  vessel :  a  fort  on  a  hill :  flag  firing :  river  in  front :  six 
vessels  before  the  fort. 

"Legend.  Aggeres  Paludes  Hostes  Victi. 

"Exergue.  Stony  Pt.  Expugn.  XV.  Jul.  MDCCLXXIX." 

The  following,  from  The  Pennsylvania  Packet  and  General  Ad- 
vertiser, No.  1650,  Philadelphia,  Thursday,  January  22,  1784,  con- 
tains a  narrative  of  the  presentation  of  this  medal : 

"Paris,  Oct.  17.  Dr.  Franklin  has  lately  delivered  to  the  sieur  De 
Fleury,  major  of  the  regiment  of  the  Saintonge  and  lieutenant- 
colonel  in  the  service  of  the  United  States  of  America,  a  medal 
which  has  been  decreed  for  him  by  Congress,  after  taking  of  Stoney 
Point.  That  fort  which  was  defended  by  30  pieces  of  cannon  and 
600  picked  men,  was  carried  in  the  night  of  the  15th  July,  1779, 
by  a  detachment  of  1100  men  under  the  command  of  gen.  Wayne. 
The  sieur  De  Fleury  who  commanded  the  van  guard,  leaped  first 
into  the  intrenchments,  and  struck  down  with  his  own  hand  the 
English  flag." 

Major  Steward's.  "Device.  America  personified  in  an  Indian 
queen,  is  presenting  a  palm  branch  to  Captain  Steward :  a  quiver 

28 


4i  8  APPENDICES. 


hangs  at  her  back :  her  bow  and  an  alligator  are  at  her  feet :  with 
her  left  hand  she  supports  a  shield  inscribed  with  the  American 
stripes,  and  resting  on  the  ground. 

"Legend.  Joanni  Stewart  Cohortis  Prefecto  Comitia  Ameri- 
cana. 

"Reverse.  A  fortress  on  an  eminence:  in  the  foreground,  an 
officer  cheering  his  men,  who  are  following  him  over  abatis  with 
charged  bayonets,  in  pursuit  of  a  flying  enemy :  troops  in  Indian 
files  ascending  the  hill  to  the  storm,  front  and  rear:  troops  ad- 
vancing from  the  shore :  ships  in  sight. 

"Exergue.  Stoney  Point  Oppugnatum,  XV  Jul.  MDCC- 
LXXIX." 


LETTERS  FROM  GENERAL  WAYNE. 


PAGE 

To (regarding  St.  Clair),  14th  October,  1778 168 

To  Bayard,  Colonel  Stephen,  Mount  Joy,  28th  March,  1778 119 

To  Birdsell,  Henry,  and  others,  Fredericksburg,  5th  October,  1778 171 

To  Board  of  War,  Camp  at  Mount  Prospect,  3d  June,  1777 64 

To  Campbell,  Major  William  (British),  Banks  of  the  Miami,  21st  August, 

*794 335 

To  Clymer,  George,  Ticonderoga,  15th  December,  1776 52 

To  Delany,  Sharp,  Ticonderoga,  15th  December,  1776 45 

"  "       (Extract),  20th  February,  1777 49 

"  "       Camp  Mount  Prospect,  7th  June,  1777 65 

"  "       Mount  Joy,  21st  May,  1778 139 

"  "       Springsteel's,  15th  July,  1779 192 

To  Febiger,  Colonel  Christian,  Second  River,  9th  December,  1779 213 

To  Field  Officers  of  Pennsylvania  Line,  Philadelphia,  14th  March,  1779 175 

"  "  "      Tappan,  12th  August,  1780 232 

To  Franklin,  Benjamin,  and  others,  Camp  at  Sorel,  13th  June,  1776 29 

"  "  Ticonderoga,  29th  July,  1776 37 

"  "  and  Morton,  Ticonderoga,  2d  October,  1776 41 

To  Harmar,  Colonel  Josiah  (Extract),  Philadelphia,  24th  February,  1779 176 

To  Henderson,  Lieutenant,  and  others,  Fredericksburg,  9th  October,  1778....  172 

To  Hull,  Major  William,  Light  Infantry  Camp,  August,  1779 413 

To  Irvine,  General  William,  Waynesborough,  18th  May,  1784 296 

To  Jay,  John,  President  of  Congress,  West  Point,  10th  August,  1779 402 

To  Johnston,  Colonel  Francis,  Ticonderoga,  12th  January,  1776 54 

"  "  "         Mount  Kemble,  1 6th  December,  1780 240 

To  Knox,  Henry,  Secretary  of  War,  Grand  Glaize,  28th  August,  1794 331 

To  Lee,  Major  Henry,  White  Plains,  20th  July,  1778 145 

To  Mease,  James,  Clothier-General,  Mount  Joy,  6th  February,  1778 117 

To  Meigs,  Colonel  Return  Jonathan,  Fort  Montgomery,  23d  August,  1779....  409 

To  Morris,  Robert,  Fredericksburg,  5th  October,  1778 156 

"  "        Williamsburg,  14th  September,  1781 279 

"  "        York,  26th  October,  1781 283 

To  Morton,  John,  and  Dr.  Benjamin  Franklin,  Ticonderoga,  2d  October,  1776    41 

To  Officers  of  Light  Infantry  Corps,  Second  River,  2d  January,  1780 215 

419 


420 


LETTERS  FROM  GENERAL   WAYNE. 


To  Pennsylvania  Officers,  Princeton,  8th  January,  1781 255 

To  Penrose,  Colonel,  Ticonderoga,  23d  August,  1776 ;     36 

To  Peters,  Richard,  Ticonderoga,  1st  December,  1776 46 

Camp  at  White  Marsh,  18th  November,  1777 105 

Lancaster,  Pennsylvania,  26th  January,  1778 116 

Mount  Joy,  8th  February,  1778 , 118 

"  1 2th  April,  1778 124 

"  13th  May,  1778 137 

Paramus,  12th  July,  1778 153 

To  Posey,  Major,  Fort  Montgomery,  28th  August,  1779 413 

To  Reed,  Joseph,  President  of  Pennsylvania,  28th  December,  1778 162 

"  "  "  "  Millstone,  24th  January,  1779..  177 

"  "  "  "  Totoway,  26th  July,  1780 219 

"           "              "                         "             Camp  at  Steenrapia,  17th  Sep- 
tember, 1780 227 

"  «  "  "  Princeton,  8th  January,  1781...  255 

To  Rush,  Dr.  Benjamin,  Ticonderoga,  18th  October,  1776 41 

"  "  Camp  at  Mount  Prospect  [June,  1777] 70 

"  "  Charlestown,  24th  December,  1782 301 

To  Schuyler,  General  Philip,  Ticonderoga,  2d  January,  1777 47 

"  "  "  "  22d  January,  1777 48 

"  «  "  «  12th  February,  1777 55 

To  Sheel,  Hugh  A.,  Haverstraw,  2d  October,  1780 235 

To  Speaker  of  Pennsylvania  Assembly,  Mount  Joy,  13th  May,  1778 121 

To  Van  Berkle,  P.  I.,  Philadelphia,  22d  October,  1784 310 

To  Washington,  Camp  near  Wilmington,  2d  September,  1777 75 

Red  Lion,  21st  September,  1777 83 

Camp  near  White  Marsh,  22d  October,  1777 84 

"  "  27th  October,  1777 109 

Camp  at  White  Marsh,  25th  November,  1777 no 

Camp,  4th  December,  1777 in 

Haddonfield,  4th  March,  1778  131 

Mount  Joy,  21st  April,  1778 134 

"  1 8th  June,  1778 136 

Hopewell,  24th  June,  1778 143 

Fort  Montgomery,  3d  July,  1779 186 

loth  July,  1779 395 

15th  July,  1779 398 

Stony  Point,  16th  July,  1779 196 

"  17th  July,  1779 2o8 

Totoway,  10th  July,  1780 223 

Tappan,  10th  August,  1780 230 

"        nth  August,  1780 231 

Smith's  White  House,  27th  September,  1780 234 


LETTERS  FROM  GENERAL   WAYNE. 


421 


To  Washington,  Mount  Kemble,  2d  January,  1781 242 

"  Trenton,  9th  January,  178 1 260 

"  Philadelphia,  27th  February,  1781 262 

To  Wayne,  Mrs.  Mary,  Ticonderoga,  12th  August,  1776 35 

3d  January,  1777 35 

"  "  Camp  at  Mount  Prospect,  7th  June,  1777 66 

"  "  Blue  Bell,  26th  August,  1777 74 

"  "  Trappe,  30th  September,  1777 93 

"  "  Camp  near  Pawling  Mill,  6th  October,  1777 95 

"  "  Spottswood,  1st  July,  1778 152 

"  "  Richmond,  Georgia,  5th  July,  1 790 313 

To  Wharton,  Thomas,  Jr.,  President  of  Pennsylvania,  Mount  Joy,  27th  March, 

1778 125 

"                "                     "                      "                      "         4th  May,  1778  120 
To  Wounded  Officers,  Providence  Forge,  10th  July,  1781 275 


INDEX. 


A. 

Abercrombie,  Mr.,  132. 

Allen,    Colonel    William,     at     Three 

Rivers,  30,  31,  32;    resignation  of, 

regretted,  39. 
Ambler's  Plantation,  engagement  near, 

273- 

Andre,  Major  John,  The  Cow-Chase  by, 
quoted,  222 ;  mentioned,  234. 

Arbuthnot,  Admiral,  227. 

Archer,  Captain  Henry  W.,  aide  to 
Wayne  at  Stony  Point,  195;  thanked 
by  Congress,  198  ;  mentioned,  210. 

Archer,  J.,  letter  of,  to  Colonel  Richard 
Butler,  396;  mentioned,  405. 

Armstrong,  General  John,  74 ;  at  Ger- 
mantown,  94;  Wayne  to,  on  rank, 
170. 

Armstrong,  General  John,  Jr.,  78. 

Arnold,  General  Benedict,  reinforced, 
25;  Wayne  covers  his  retreat  from 
Montreal,  31, 32 ;  Philadelphia  under, 
162;  chapter  on  treason  of,  21 1; 
treason  of,  alluded  to,  233,  235,  360, 
366. 

Associators  of  Pennsylvania,  17;  dis- 
banded, 60. 

Atlee,  Margaretta,  nie  Wayne,  354. 

Atlee,  Colonel  Samuel  J.,  1 7. 

Atlee,  William  R.,  373. 


Bache,  Mrs.  Sarah,  aids  the  soldiers, 

241. 
Baker,  Sergeant,  403. 


Balfour,  Dr.  George,  343. 

Ball,  Colonel,  399. 

Ball,  Lieutenant  William,  arrested,  171, 
172,  173- 

Bank  of  North  America  established  to 
relieve  the  wants  of  the  soldiers, 
241. 

Barber,  General,  331,332. 

Barber,  Major,  273. 

Barras,  Louis  de,  leaves  Newport  for 
the  Chesapeake,  278. 

Barren  Hill,  attempt  to  capture  La  Fay- 
ette at,  139. 

Bartholomew  family,  67. 

Bawser,  William,  259. 

Bayard,  Lieutenant-Colonel  Stephen, 
101, 102, 1 15,  159 ;  wounded  at  Bran- 
dywine,  79 ;  letters  of  Wayne  to,  on 
clothing,  etc.,  119,  121,  123. 

Bayonets  wanted  by  Wayne,  June  7, 
!777>  65;  ordered  by  Wayne,  and 
his  opinion  of,  118;  use  of,  taught  by 
Steuben  and  Wayne,  130;  use  of,  at 
Monmouth,  148. 

Beggarstown,  97. 

Bergen  Heights,  Wayne  ordered  to  at- 
tack block-house  at,  218;  Wayne's 
letter  to  Reed  regarding,  219 ;  Reed's 
reply,  220. 

Berkle,  Mr.  P.  I.  Van,  on  negotiating  a 
loan,  310. 

Bicker,  Colonel,  100,  101. 

Biddle,  Colonel  Clement,  133. 

Biddle,  E.,  166. 

Bigelow,  Major,  sent  with  a  flag  to 
Canada,  35. 

423 


424 


INDEX. 


Billingsport,  Washington  strengthens 
the  posts  at,  102. 

Bingham,  Sergeant,  91. 

Bird,  Mark,  166. 

Bird's  Tavern,  273. 

Birdsell,  Henry  and  James,  172. 

Birmingham  Meeting- House,  77. 

Bissell,  Captain  Russell,  343. 

Bitting,  Captain,  death  of,  242. 

Blatchley,  Dr.,  255. 

Block-house  at  Bergen,  Wayne  ordered 
to  attack,  218;  his  letter  to  Reed  on 
the  subject,  219;  Reed's  reply,  220. 

Board  of  War,  letter  to,  from  Wayne 
on  clothing  and  retreat  of  General 
Grant,  64. 

Boston,  tea  destroyed  at,  12 ;  conduct  of 
mob  at,  not  universally  approved,  12. 

Boyer,  Colonel,  taken  prisoner,  274. 

Brandt,  Joseph,  338. 

Brandywine,  battle  of,  described,  77, 
78. 

"  British  Rebels,"  a  name  given  to  the 
enemy  by  Wayne,  36. 

Broadhead,  Lieutenant-Colonel  Daniel, 
62,  8^  86,  101 ;  at  Pittsburgh,  157; 
mentioned,  159. 

Brock,  Captain  Joseph,  ^^. 

Brown,  Colonel  Thomas  (British),  289. 

Bruner,  Lieutenant-Colonel,  102. 

Buchanan,  Captain  Thomas,  78. 

Burgoyne,  General  Sir  John,  3^  37 '>  64 ; 
at  Three  Rivers,  28,  30 ;  left  to  his 
fate  by  Howe,  73 ;  effect  on  Con- 
gress of  the  capture  of,  1 24 ;  surrender 
of,  commented  on  by  Wayne,  283. 

Burk,  ^Edanus,  296. 

BurweWs  Ferry ,  Virginia,  278. 

Butler,  Edward,  80,  320. 

Butler,  Colonel  Richard,  80,  83,  84, 
xoi,  132, 169, 170, 179,  184, 185, 186, 
208,  209,  214,  215,  233,  242,  243, 
267,  286,  399,  401,  402,  411 ;  at 
Monmouth,  145,  153  ;  commands  in 


Light  Infantry  Corps,  180;  recon- 
noitres Stony  Point,  190;  Washing- 
ton approves  of  conduct  of,  253; 
letter  of,  to  the  officers,  255;  diary 
of,  quoted,  278,  281 ;  quoted,  292, 
294;  death  of,  320;  orders  to,  re- 
garding Stony  Point,  396. 

Butler,  Captain  Thomas,  79,  80 ; 
wounded,  320. 

Butler,  Lieutenant-Colonel  William,  62, 
80,  101 ;  on  the  Mohawk,  157,  159, 

233. 
Byles,  Major  Thomas  L.,  179. 
Byrd,  Mrs.,  of  Westover,  thanks  Wayne 

for  his  kindness,  277. 


Cabin  Point,  Virginia,  276. 

Cadwalader,  General  John,  142,  143, 
362. 

Cadwalader,  Colonel  Lambert,  159. 

Caldwell, ,  255. 

Campbell,  Lieutenant,  333. 

Campbell,  Major  William  (British), 
Wayne's  correspondence  with,  Au- 
gust 21,  1794,  335. 

Campbell.     See  Miss  Campbell. 

Canada,  Wayne's  campaign  in,  25; 
hopes  of  its  joining  the  other  colo- 
nies, 25 ;  Wayne  opposed  to  a  cam- 
paign against,  in  1780,  224. 

Cannon,  James,  68. 

Carleton,  General  Sir  Guy,  35. 

Carroll,  Rev.  John,  27. 

Censors,  Council  of,  duty  of  the,  302. 

Chad's  Ford,  Wayne  stationed  at,  77. 

Chambers,  Colonel  James,  64;  at  battle 
of  Brandywine,  78,  84,  87,  99,  117, 

159.  179,  233- 
Chambers,  Colonel  William,  62. 
Chapman,  Major  Albert,  214,  215. 
Charleston,   reduction   and   evacuation 

of,  291,  292. 


INDEX. 


425 


Chase,  Samuel,  27. 

Chester  County,  proceedings  in,  at  the 
beginning  of  the  Revolution,  14; 
military  ardor  in,  at  the  beginning 
of  the  Revolution,  1 7 ;  Revolution 
in,  19 ;  opposed  to  independency 
in  1775,  21. 

Church,  Major  Thomas,  18,  102,  159, 
240. 

Cincinnati,  Georgia  State  Society  of, 
Wayne  elected  president  of,  297; 
Pennsylvania  Society  of,  erect  a 
monument  to  Wayne  at  St.  David's, 
Radnor,  Pennsylvania,  344,  350. 

Cincinnati.    See  Fort  Washington,  325, 

327. 
Clarke,  General   Sir   Alured  (British), 

288. 
Clarkson,  Gerardus,  interested  in  Nova 

Scotia  lands,  8. 
Clarkson,  Matthew,  interested  in  Nova 

Scotia  lands,  8. 
Clayton,  Mr.,  86. 
Clinton,  Sir  Henry,  136,  140,  141,  182, 

216,  219,  223,  224,  225,  228;  action 

of,  when  hearing  of  the   mutiny  in 

the  American  camp,  246,  268,  362. 
Clothing,  want  of,  at  Valley  Forge,  115. 
Clothing  of  troops  neglected,  138,  162. 
Clymer,  George,  letter  to,  from  Wayne 

on  sickness  at  Ticonderoga,  52. 
Coe,  Captain,  55,  56. 
Collins,  Mr.  (printer),  145. 
Commissary    department    reprimanded 

by  Wayne,  184. 
Congress,  report  of,  on  condition  and 

wants   of  the   army,  218;  flight   of, 

from  Philadelphia,  298. 
Connor,    Lieutenant-Colonel    Morgan, 

62. 
"  Conway  Cabal,"  Wayne   shocked   at 

the  intrigues  of  the,  1 14. 
Conway,  General  Thomas,  62,  100;  at 

Germantown,  95. 


Cook,  Colonel,  100. 

Cornwallis,  Lord,  238,  266,  267,  268, 
269,  273,  357;  at  Brandywine,  77; 
retires  to  Portsmouth,  276 ;  takes  posi- 
tion at  Yorktown,  277 ;  surrender  of, 
282  ;  note  of,  to  Wayne,  282. 

Councils  of  war,  Wayne's  opinion  of, 
106. 

Covington,  Lieutenant  Leonard,  333. 

Cow-Chase,  The,  by  Andr6,  on  attack 
on  the  block-house,  quoted,  222. 

Craig,  Colonel  Thomas,  100,  101,  159, 
!79>  233»  254,  282,  286;  at  Mon- 
mouth, 147. 

Creek  Indians  attack  Wayne's  camp  at 
Sharon,  290. 

Crown  Point,  33;  strength  of,  52. 


D. 

Davis  family,  67. 

Dawson,  Henry  B.,  quoted  on  Stony 
Point,  182;  mentioned,  207. 

Dayton,  Colonel  William,  56. 

De  Butts,  Captain  Henry,  333. 

Declaration  of  Independence  little 
mentioned  in  1777,56;  not  approved 
by  all,  58. 

Dehaes,  General  John  Philip,  37,  43, 
44,  158. 

Delany,  Sharp,  letter  of  Wayne  to,  on 
intense  cold  at  Ticonderoga,  45 ; 
mentioned,  47 ;  letter  of  Wayne  to, 
on  affairs  at  Ticonderoga,  49 ;  letter 
of,  to  Wayne  on  his  appointment  as 
brigadier-general,  50;  Wayne's  letter 
to,  from  camp  at  Mount  Prospect,  65 ; 
Wayne  to,  in  regard  to  pay  of  the 
officers,  128;  letter  of  Wayne  to,  on 
Barren  Hill,  139;  Wayne's  letter  to, 
previous  to  attack  on  Stony  Point, 
192;  to  Wayne  on  capture  of  Stony 
Point,  200;  executor  to  Wayne's 
will,  355. 


426 


INDEX. 


Desertions  punished  by   Wayne,   22; 
among  Wayne's  troops  at  Pittsburgh, 

323. 
Dickinson,  President,  298. 
Discipline  maintained  by  Wayne,  23 ; 

Wayne  on,  46. 
Donlop,  Sergeant,  403. 
Donop,  Count,  killed  at  Red  Bank,  103. 
Douglass,  Lieutenant  William,  78. 
Doyle,  Captain,  131,  132. 
Duffield,  Edward,  interested   in  Nova 

Scotia  lands,  8. 
Duncan,  Ensign,  333. 
Dunlap,  83. 
Duportail,  General  Lebegue.     See  Por- 

tail,  284. 


Edwards,  Major,  270. 

Egle,  William  H.,  letter  concerning 
the  statement  that  the  Celtic  Irish 
composed  the  Pennsylvania  line,  248, 
249. 

Ellis,  Colonel,  131,  132. 

England  refuses  to  surrender  the  posts 
in  the  Northwest,  315;  encourages 
the  Indians  in  their  hostilities  against 
the  United  States,  329. 

English  rebels,  46,  52,  54. 

Erie,  monument  erected  to  the  memory 
of  Wayne  at,  344. 

Estaing,  Count  d',  arrival  of,  155; 
operations  of,  against  Rhode  Island, 
156;  against  Savannah,  156;  men- 
tioned, 279. 

Evans,  Issachar,  373. 

Evans,  William,  373. 


Farmer,  Mr.,  221. 
Fatland  Ford,  84. 

Febiger,    Colonel    Christian,  184,  185, 
208,  209,  213,  399,  401,  411,   415; 


commands  in  Light  Infantry  Corps, 
180;  reconnoitres  Stony  Point,  190; 
at  Stony  Point,  194;  troops  under, 
in  want  of  shoes,  212. 

Finley,  Major,  290. 

Finney,  W.,  letter  of,  to  Wayne,  on  be- 
half of  wounded  officers,  276. 

Fishbourne,  Captain  Benjamin,  aide  to 
Wayne,  195;  mentioned,  210,  252. 

Fleury,  Colonel  Louis,  190,  209 ;  strikes 
the  colors  at  Stony  Point,  195 ; 
thanked  by  Congress,  198 ;  report 
of,  to  Wayne,  403 ;  mentioned,  404, 
405,  407,  411,  415;  description  of 
medal  presented  to,  417. 

Fort  Defiance,  erection  of,  330. 

Fort  Jefferson,  326,  327. 

Fort  Lafayette,  186. 

Fort  Lee,  219. 

Fort  Massac,  336. 

Fort  Mercer  attacked,  103. 

Fort  Mifflin,  102;  engagement  at,  103; 
Wayne  on  fall  of,  105. 

Fort  Recovery,  St.  Clair's  men  attacked 
by  the  Indians  at,  319;  occupied 
by  Wayne,  328,  329 ;  engagement  at, 

330- 

Fort  Washington,  news  of  loss  of, 
reaches  Ticonderoga,  46;  now  Cin- 
cinnati, Wayne  at,  325. 

Franklin,  Benjamin,  interested  in  Nova 
Scotia  lands,  8;  mentioned,  25,  27; 
Wayne's  letter  to,  on  battle  of 
Three  Rivers,  29;  Wayne's  letter  to, 
on  affairs  at  Ticonderoga,  1776,  37; 
Wayne's  letter  to,  on  politics  in 
Pennsylvania  in  1776,  41. 

Frazer,  Persifor,  18 ;  taken  prisoner, 
79,  101 ;  mentioned,  159. 

French  alliance,  137;  effect  of,  155. 

French  fleet,  arrival  of,  155;  proceeds 
against  Rhode  Island,  155;  against 
Savannah,  156. 

Funk,  Jacob,  44. 


INDEX. 


427 


G. 

Gage,  General  Thomas,  14. 

Gaither,  Major,  320. 

Galloway,  Joseph,  91. 

Galvan,  Major,  269;  attempts  to  cap- 
ture cannon,  273,  274. 

"  Garrison  Hill,"  burial-place  of  Gen- 
eral Wayne,  343. 

Gaskin,  Colonel,  267,  282. 

Gates,  General  Horatio,  40,  44,  62,  94, 
201 ;  his  reputation  prejudicial  to  the 
cause,  23;  Wayne  to,  on  sufferings 
of  the  soldiers,  53;  Wayne  to,  on 
loss  of  Fort  Mifflin,  112;  influence, 
114;  on  capture  of  Stony  Point, 
199. 

Georgia,  campaign  in,  286 ;  Legislature 
of,  presents  Wayne  with  a  planta- 
tion, 292;  Wayne's  estate  in,  309; 
estates,  losses  occasioned  Wayne  by, 

353- 

Gerard  to  Steuben  on  capture  of  Stony 
Point,  201. 

Germantown,  74 ;  Sir  W.  Howe  at,  92 ; 
Wayne  and  others  in  favor  of  an  at- 
tack on,  93 ;  Washington  decides  to 
attack  the  enemy  at,  94;  Wayne's 
account  of,  95  ;  General  Hunter's 
account  of  battle  of,  97 ;  Howe  at, 

97- 
Gibbons,    Lieutenant,    leads    "forlorn 

hope"  at  Stony  Point,  192;  at  Stony 

Point,    194;    thanked  by   Congress, 

198  ;   mentioned,  210,  405,  406,  407, 

411. 
Gist,  Colonel  Mordecai,  286. 
Gouvion,  Colonel,  284. 
Grant,  General  James,  forced  to  retire 

by  Wayne,  65;  mentioned,  69,  71. 
Grasse,    Comte    de,   281 ;    leaves    the 

West  Indies  for  Yorktown,  278;  at 

Yorktown,  279,  280,  281. 
Graves,  Admiral  Thomas,  278. 


Graydon,  Alexander,  his  memoirs 
quoted  regarding  Wayne's  appear- 
ance, 66. 

Green  Spring,  Virginia,  269;  engage- 
ment at,  270-272,  276;    mentioned, 

357. 

Greene,  Colonel  Christopher,  103. 

Greene,  General  Nathaniel,  51,  133, 
142,  271,  272,  286,  287;  at  Brandy- 
wine,  77 ;  at  Germantown,  94,  95 ; 
at  Monmouth,  147 ;  appointed  quar- 
termaster, 160;  to  Wayne  on  capture 
of  Stony  Point,  199;  to  his  wife  on 
Stony  Point,  201  ;  in  charge  of  mili- 
tary affairs  in  South  Carolina,  264 ; 
letter  of  La  Fayette  to,  on  the  mili- 
tary situation,  273,  274;  in  South 
Carolina,  288;  letter  to  General 
Wayne  congratulating  him  on  vic- 
tory in  Georgia,  293. 

Greeneville,  Ohio,  named  after  General 
Nathaniel  Greene  by  Wayne,  327; 
treaty  of,  338. 

Grey,  General  Charles,  195. 

Grier,  Colonel  David,  79,  83,  101. 

Grier,  Major  James,  wounded  at  Brandy- 
wine,  79 ;  mentioned,  179. 

Guristersijo,  Indian  chief,  slain,  290. 

H. 

Haddonfield,  New  Jersey,  131. 

Hambright,  Sergeant,  91. 

Hamilton, ,  254. 

Hamilton,  Colonel  Alexander,  on  the 
Council  at  Hopewell,  141. 

Hampton,  Colonel  Wade,  287. 

Hamtramck,  Colonel  John  F.,  $33- 

Hand,  General  Edward,  appointed  for 
North  Carolina,  157. 

Harmar,  Lieutenant-Colonel  Josiah, 
102,  159,  179,  233,  254,  270;  letters 
of,  to  Wayne  on  rank,  176;  wishes 
to  serve  in  the  Light  Corps,  177  ;  ex- 


428 


INDEX. 


pedition  against  the  Indians  under, 
defeated,  318. 

Harper,  Adjutant  John,  letter  of,  to 
Wayne  on  sickness  and  recruiting  at 
Albany,  42 ;  taken  prisoner,  79. 

Harrison,  Lieutenant  William  H.,  333. 

Hartley,  Colonel  Thomas,  37,  83,  86, 
101,  117;  at  Three  Rivers,  29;  at 
Sunbury,  157. 

Hausegger,  Colonel  Nicholas,  62. 

Hay,  Captain  Samuel,  29,  159,  407, 
411. 

Hazlewood,  Commodore,  102. 

Henderson,  Lieutenant  John,  arrested, 
171,172,  173. 

Henry,  William,  118,  1 19,  124. 

"  Hobson's  Choice,"  Wayne's  camp 
near  Cincinnati,  326. 

Hockley,  Colonel  Thomas,  1 7. 

Holida,  Jonah,  attempts  to  excite  a 
mutiny,  55. 

Hood,  Admiral  Samuel,  278,  279. 

Howe,  Richard,  Lord,  279. 

Howe,  Sir  William,  37,  44,  63,  71, 124, 
134,  135;  evacuates  New  Jersey,  72; 
sails  for  Chesapeake  Bay,  73  ;  arrives, 
74 ;  reports  capture  of  guns  that  were 
recaptured,  79;  crosses  the  Schuyl- 
kill at  Fatland  Ford,  82 ;  arrives  at 
German  town,  92;  at  battle  of  Ger- 
mantown,  96,  97. 

Howell,  Mr.,  121,  124,  127. 

Howell,  Captain,  commands  the  Second 
Regiment  at  battle  of  Germantown, 
100. 

Hubley,  Lieutenant-Colonel  Adam,  Jr., 
62,  S^t  101 ;  letter  of,  to  Wayne  con- 
cerning the  mutiny,  257. 

Hughes,  John,  the  stamp-master,  inter- 
ested in  Nova  Scotia  lands,  9. 

Hulings,  Major,  102. 

Hull,  Major  William,  at  Stony  Point, 
190;  mentioned,  208,  401,  404,  407  ; 
letter  of,  to   Wayne   on   capture   of 


Stony  Point,  and  Wayne's  reply,  413, 

415- 
Humpton,  Colonel  Richard,  62,  83,  87, 

101,  270. 
Hunter,  General   (British),  account  of 

battle  of  Germantown,  97. 

L 

Iddings,  Elizabeth,  wife  of  Isaac  Wayne, 
mother  of  General  Wayne,  6. 

Iddings,  Richard,  6. 

Indians,  Creek  and  Cherokee,  Wayne 
negotiates  a  treaty  of  peace  with,  294. 

Indians,  the  Miami  and  other  Western, 
endeavor  to  prevent  settlements  west 
of  Pennsylvania,  317. 

Indians,  the  Miami,  Wayne's  distrust 
of,  328;  are  assisted  by  the  English, 
328;  receive  his  last  overtures  of 
peace,  330;  defeated  by  Wayne,  331. 

Irish,  Celtic,  not  many  in  the  Pennsyl- 
vania line,  248. 

Irvine,  General  William,  5,  25,  33,  157, 
159,  160,  168,  169,  170,  233,  235, 
261 ;  at  Three  Rivers,  29,  30;  taken 
prisoner,  31 ;  at  Monmouth,  147 ; 
commands  in  Light  Infantry  Corps, 
180 ;  letters  from,  to  Washington  con- 
cerning the  appointment  of  Macpher- 
son,  230,  231 ;  letter  to  field  officers 
of  the  Pennsylvania  line,  232 ;  letter 
to  Wayne  from,  and  Wayne's  answer, 
regarding  the  Cincinnati,  296. 

Irving,  Washington,  fails  to  understand 
Wayne's  character,  356, 359, 360, 361. 

Isle  aux  Noixy  33. 


Jackson, ,  288. 

Jackson,  Colonel  Henry,  143. 
Jackson,  James,    opposes    Wayne    for 

Congress,  314. 
James  Island  evacuated  by  the  British, 

273. 


INDEX. 


429 


Jay,  John,  412. 

Jay's  Treaty,  339,  341 ;  stipulations  of, 
regarding  the  Western  posts,  342. 

Johnston, ,  51. 

Johnston,  Colonel  Francis,  18,  28,  46, 
62,  70,  116,  159,  253;  letter  of,  to 
Richard  Peters  on  sickness  of  troops, 
43  ;  to  Wayne  on  military  affairs  and 
sickness  of  troops,  43;  letter  of 
Wayne  to,  on  sickness  in  his  regi- 
ment, 54 ;  taken  prisoner  at  Brandy- 
wine,  100;  on  Wayne's  influence, 
171 ;  commands  in  Light  Infantry 
Corps,  180,  216;  on  the  sufferings  of 
the  soldiers,  216;  letter  from  Wayne 
to,  on  distress  of  his  troops,  240. 

Johnston,  Colonel  Henry  (British),  196, 
197;  British  commander  of  Stony 
Point,  183. 

Jones,  Mr.,  86. 

Jones,  Rev.  David,  37,  283 ;  letter  from, 
to  Wayne  on  public  matters  in  Penn- 
sylvania, 1 78 1, 285  ;  delivered  funeral 
oration  at  reinterment  of  Wayne,  350. 

Jones,  Joseph,  letter  of  Washington  to, 
regarding  sacrifices  of  the  officers  of 
the  army,  217. 

K. 

Kennedy,  Dr.,  46. 

King's  Ferry,  on  the  Hudson,  held  by 
the  British,  155. 

Knox,  Lieutenant  George,  leads  the 
"forlorn  hope"  at  Stony  Point,  192; 
thanked  by  Congress,  198;  men- 
tioned, 210,  403,  405,  406,  407,  411. 

Knox,  General  Henry,  133;  at  Mon- 
mouth, 147 ;  trying  for  a  major- 
general's  commission,  284;  views  of, 
adverse  to  an  Indian  war,  325,  326; 
approves  of  Wayne's  course,  329; 
Secretary  of  War,  Wayne's  letter 
to,  with  account  of  victory  over  the 
Miamies,  331. 


Knox,  Robert,  164. 

Knyphausen,  General,  at  Brandywine, 
77,  78,  359- 

L. 

Lacey,  General  John,  18,  284. 

La  Fayette,  Marquis  de,  I,  142,  144; 
compared  with  Wayne,  15;  quoted 
regarding  Conway,  100;  attempt  to 
capture,  at  Barren  Hill,  139;  on 
capture  of  Stony  Point,  199;  with 
Wayne  in  Virginia,  267,  268;  official 
report  of  action  at  Green  Springs  by, 
to  General  Greene,  272 ;  letter  of,  to 
General  Greene  on  battle  of  Green 
Springs,  273,  274;  order  of,  compli- 
menting Wayne  and  the  Pennsylvania 
troops,  274 ;  effects  of  his  campaign 
in  Virginia,  277 ;  receives  word  from 
Washington  of  his  intention  to  join 
him  at  Yorktown,  278. 

Lamar,  Major,  killed,  100. 

Laneuville,  Major  Noirmont  de,  404. 

Lang,  Captain,  123. 

Lang,  Commissary  James,  letters  of,  to 
Wayne  regarding  clothing,  117. 

Laurens,  Colonel  John,  duel  of,  with 
Lee,  151. 

Lawson,  General,  273. 

Learning, ,  8^. 

Lee,  General  Charles,  his  reputation 
prejudicial  to  the  cause,  23;  influ- 
ence, 114,  142;  at  Monmouth,  144; 
under  arrest,  145;  to  Robert  Mor- 
ris on  Wayne  at  Monmouth,  149; 
tried  for  disobedience,  150;  chal- 
lenges received  by,  from  Steuben, 
Laurens,  and  Wayne,  151 ;  to  Wayne 
on  capture  of  Stony  Point,  199;  men- 
tioned, 152,  201,  359,  366. 

Lee,  Major  Henry,  on  Wayne  at  Bran- 
dywine, 78 ;  letter  of  Wayne  to,  on 
Monmouth,  145 ;  mentioned,  130, 
191,  209,  294,  400. 


43° 


INDEX. 


Legion  of  the  United  States  organized 
by  Wayne,  321 ;   muster-roll   of,  in 

I793>  389- 
Legionville,  Wayne  moves  his  camp  to, 

324. 

Lennox,  Major  David,  159. 

Lewis, ,  310. 

Lewis,  Colonel,  43. 

Lewis,  Captain  H.,  333. 

Lewis,  Joseph  J.,  of  West  Chester, 
writes  the  supplementary  chapter,  349. 

Lewis,  Thomas,  333. 

Lewis,  William,  355. 

Light  Infantry  Corps  to  be  commanded 
by  Wayne,  169,  180;  composition  of, 
180;  address  of  Wayne  to,  181 ;  neg- 
lect of,  by  commissary,  211 ;  broken 
up,  212;  Wayne  thanked  by  the  offi- 
cers of,  and  his  replies,  213-215. 

Lincoln,  General,  Secretary  of  War,  284. 

Linn,  John  Blair,  letter  from,  concern- 
ing the  Irish  composing  the  Pennsyl- 
vania line,  249 ,  250. 

Livingston,  Colonel,  at  Monmouth,  152 ; 
mentioned,  234. 

Litell,  Mr.,  237. 

Lloyd,  Colonel  Hugh,  17. 

Lodi,  combat  at  bridge  of,  203. 

Lyttle,  Mr.,  221. 


If. 

McCalla,  Rev.  Daniel,  taken  prisoner 

at  Three  Rivers,  31. 

McCoy, ,  288. 

McCrea,  Dr.,  48. 

MacDougall,       General       Alexander, 

Wayne  borrows  rum  from,  184. 
McHenry,   Captain    Charles,   letter  to 

Wayne  on  recruiting,  123. 
McKean,  Chief  Justice,  310. 
McKee,   Colonel,   the    British    Indian 

agent,  334. 
McKenney,  Lieutenant,  333. 


MacMichael,  Lieutenant  James,  his 
account  of  battle  of  Brandy  wine,  80. 

McNutt,  Alexander,  interested  in  Nova 
Scotia  lands,  8. 

Macpherson,  Major  William,  dissatis- 
faction caused  by  his  appointment, 
174,  229,  230;  letter  to  Wayne  con- 
cerning his  rank,  232. 

"  Mad  Anthony"  a  sobriquet  ill  applied 
to  Wayne,  1,  356,  360,  364;  men- 
tioned, 22,  171,  206,  291 ;  origin  of, 
207. 

Magaw,  Colonel  Robert,  159,  177. 

March,  Williani,  172. 

Marshall,  Lieutenant  John,  arrested, 
171,  172,  173. 

Marshall,  Colonel  Thomas,  at  Brandy- 
wine,  78. 

Martin,  Governor  John,  of  Georgia, 
287. 

Matlack,  Captain,  131. 

Matlack,  Timothy,  68. 

Maxwell,  General,  and  Colonel  William, 
at  Three  Rivers,  28,  29,  30;  men- 
tioned, 137,  143. 

Mease,  James,  letter  of  Wayne  to,  on 
clothing,  117;  slowness  of,  in  matters 
of  clothing,  121 ;  mentioned,  123. 

Medals  presented  to  Wayne  and  his 
companions  for  bravery  at  Stony 
Point,  description  of,  416-418. 

Meigs,  Return  Jonathan,  commands  in 
Light  Infantry  Corps,  180;  men- 
tioned, 184,  185,  190,  208,  209,  234, 
274,  401 ;  letter  of,  to  Wayne  on  cap- 
ture of  Stony  Point,  and  Wayne's 
reply,  407,  410,  412,  415. 

Mentges,  Major  Francis,  159,  179. 

Mentges,  Major  J.  See  Mentges,  Francis. 

Meschianza,  ladies  of,  told  of  victory  of 
Monmouth,  153. 

Miami,  Wayne's  victory  over  the  In- 
dians on  the,  331 ;  result  of  the  battle 
373- 


INDEX. 


43i 


Middlebrook,  Washington  at,  63. 

Mifflin,  General  Thomas,  61,  87,  89, 
160 ;  and  others,  letter  of,  to  Wayne 
urging  Wayne's  presence  in  Pennsyl- 
vania, 165. 

Miles,  Colonel  Samuel,  17,  18. 

Miller,   Major   Henry,    64,    102,    116, 

159- 
Mills,  Major  John,  333. 
Miner,  Charles,  372. 

Minzer, ,  176. 

Miss  Campbell,  Robert,  332 ;  death  of, 

333- 

Mississippi  River,  condition  of  affairs  on 
the,  336. 

Monckton,  Colonel  Henry,  killed  at 
Monmouth,  147. 

Monmouth,  battle  of,  council  of  war 
held  at  Hopewell  prior  to,  142; 
Wayne's  suggestions  regarding, 
adopted,  143;  mentioned,  145,  146, 
157, 168;  described  by  Wayne  to  his 
wife,  152;  to  Richard  Peters,  153. 

Montgomery,  General  Richard,  his 
army  reinforced,  25. 

Montgomery,  Colonel  William,  17. 

Moor  Hall,  140. 

Moore,   Colonel  James,    17,    18,    102, 

"59- 

Moore,  Major  Thomas  H.,  letter  of,  to 
Wayne  giving  an  account  of  his 
troops,  254. 

Morgan,  General  Daniel,  143. 

Morgan's  Corps,  105. 

Morris,  Captain,  43. 

Morris,  Robert,  Charles  Lee  to,  regard- 
ing Monmouth,  149;  letter  of  Wayne 
to,  on  the  number  of  Pennsylvania 
troops  in  the  field,  156,  157  ;  Wayne 
appeals  to,  164 ;  extract  of  letter  from, 
to  Wayne  regarding  action  at  Green 
Springs,  272;  Wayne's  letter  to,  on 
the  arrival  of  Count  de  Grasse  at 
Yorktown,  279;  letter  from  Wayne 


to,  on  surrender  of  Cornwallis,  283 ; 

recommends  Wayne   to   negotiate  a 

loan,  309,  311. 
Morristown,  New  Jersey,  Wayne    or- 
dered to,  60. 
Morton,  John,  Wayne's  letter  to  him  on 

politics  in  Pennsylvania  in  1776,  41. 
Mount  Defiance,  73. 
Moylan's      (Stephen)      dragoons      in 

Georgia,  287. 
Muhlenberg,  General  Peter,  ordered  to 

support  Wayne  at  Stony  Point,  191 ; 

mentioned,  133,  210,  273. 
Murfrees,  Major  Hardy,   190,  191 ;  at 

Stony    Point,  193,   195;    mentioned, 

208,  209,  401,  402,  404. 
Murray,  Major  John,  159,  179. 
Mutiny    at    Ticonderoga     quelled    by 

Wayne,  55,  56. 
Mutiny  in  Pennsylvania  line,  proposals 

to    the    mutineers,    257;     President 

Reed  to  the  mutineers,  259. 


N. 

Nagle,  Colonel,  100,  101. 

Naglee,  John,  interested  in  Nova  Scotia 
lands,  8. 

Napoleon  I.,  203. 

Nelson,  Captain  John,  his  company 
mutiny,  55. 

Nesbitt,  Mr.,  257. 

New  Jersey,  Wayne  sent  into,  to  collect 
forage,  130. 

New  York,  the  attack  on,  proposed  by 
General  Reed,  approved  of  by  Wayne 
and  others,  133,  134;  Wayne  in  favor 
of  an  attack  on,  226. 

Nichol,  Major,  102. 

Nichols,  Brigade-Major  Francis,  84. 

Norrell's  Mill,  273. 

North,  Colonel  Caleb,  18,  S^,  102. 

Nova  Scotia,  Wayne  sent  to,  as  a  sur- 
veyor, 8. 


43  2 


INDEX. 


O. 

Oldham,  Captain  William,  letter  of,  to 

Wayne  on  recruiting,  123. 
"Old    Soldier,  The,"  quotation   from, 

313. 
Oneida  Indians  at  Barren  Hill,  140. 
Opera  "Lucille"  referred  to,  281. 


Paoli  remembered  by  Wayne's  men  at 
Germantown,  97. 

"  Paoli  Massacre,"  Wayne's  report  re- 
garding, 83 ;  Wayne  demands  an  in- 
vestigation of  his  conduct  at,  84 ;  his 
defence,  85  ;  account  of,  89. 

Parry,  Lieutenant-Colonel  Caleb,  killed 
at  Long  Island,  18. 

Patterson,  General  John,  51. 

Pendleton,  Captain  James,  214,  215. 

Pennsylvania,  political  difficulties  in, 
56,  57,  58 ;  careless  of  her  troops,  57 ; 
political  condition  of,  in  1777,67; 
showed  the  road  to  victory  at  Mon- 
mouth, 153  ;  sketch  of  public  matters 
in,  285. 

Pennsylvania  Assembly,  letter  of 
Wayne  to  Speaker  of,  on  recruiting 
and  clothing,  121 ;  Wayne  appeals  to, 
165;  to  Wayne  on  capture  of  Stony 
Point,  201. 

Pennsylvania  Associators,  17. 

Pennsylvania  brigades  consolidated, 
i58. 

Pennsylvania  Constitution  of  i77°»  4°- 

Pennsylvania  line,  difficulty  regarding 
rank,  173;  Wayne  to  officers  of,  on 
rank,  175,  176;  address  of  officers 
of,  to  Wayne  on  his  retiring  from 
command  of,  175,  178;  mutiny  in, 
242 ;  letters  regarding  the  state- 
ment that  it  was  composed  mainly  of 
Celtic  Irish,  248 ;  official  account  of 
the  revolt  of,  252;    ordered  to  Vir- 


ginia, 264 ;  retained  in  South  Car- 
olina, 288;  soldiers  of,  pay  received 
by,  297;  arrangement  of,  in  1778, 
376;  in  1781,  383. 

Pennsylvania  troops,  noble  conduct  of, 
42,  43 ;  Colonel  Johnston's  opinion  of, 
43 ;  Wayne's  opinion  of,  47 ;  ordered 
home  from  Ticonderoga,  48 ;  reor- 
ganized, 61 ;  in  want  of  uniforms,  64  ; 
force  General  Grant  to  retire,  65  ;  at 
Brandywine,  78,  79 ;  records  of  their 
actions,  98 ;  number  of,  in  the  service, 
157;  sufferings  of,  at  Middlebrook, 
159;  in  Light  Infantry  Corps,  180; 
numbers  of,  greatly  diminished  in 
1780,  216 ;  complimented  by  La  Fay- 
ette, 274. 

Penrose,  Colonel  Joseph,  Wayne's  letter 
to,  on  the  unhealthiness  of  Ticon- 
deroga, 36. 

Penrose,  Mary,  daughter  of  Bartholo- 
mew, marries  Anthony  Wayne,  10. 
See  Wayne. 

Peters,  Richard,  letter  to  Colonel  Johns- 
ton on  sickness  of  Pennsylvania  sol- 
diers, 43  ;  mentioned,  45  ;  letter  of 
Wayne  to,  on  fall  of  Fort  Washington, 
46;  letter  of,  to  Wayne,  May  27, 
1777,  70;  mentioned,  104;  Wayne 
to,  on  loss  of  Fort  Mifflin,  105  ;  letter 
of  Wayne  to,  on  clothing,  116;  letter 
of  Wayne  to,  regarding  bayonets,  1 18 ; 
to  Wayne  on  same  subject,  119;  letter 
of  Wayne  to,  on  slow  action  of  Con- 
gress, 124;  Wayne  to,  on  clothing, 
127;  letter  of  Wayne  to,  on  French 
alliance  and  want  of  clothing,  137 ; 
letter  of  Wayne  to,  on  battle  of 
Monmouth,  153;  letter  of  Wayne  to, 
quoted,  280. 

Philadelphia,  meeting  held  to  oppose 
Boston  Port  Bill,  13;  policy  of, 
adopted,  14;  American  army  passes 
through,  74 ;  evacuated  by  the  British, 


INDEX. 


433 


136 ;  Wayne  opposed  to  an  attack  on, 
136;  evacuated,  141 ;  ladies  of,  to  be 
told  of  victory  of  Monmouth,  153;  so- 
ciety of,  described,  161,  162;  society 
of,  not  so  agreeable  as  formerly,  285  ; 
Wayne's  reception  at,  in  1795,  339- 

Phillips,  General,  219,  266. 

Piticoodzack  River,  Nova  Scotia,  Wayne 
and  others  interested  in  lands  on,  8. 

Pittsburgh,  Wayne  at,  in  1792,  322. 

Poor,  General  Enoch,  133. 

Portail,  General  Lebegue  du,  284. 

Porter,  General,  93. 

Posey,  Major,  404;  Wayne's  letter  to, 
on  capture  of  Stony  Point,  414. 

Posey,  Colonel  Thomas,  290. 

Postal  communication  established  by 
Massachusetts  with  Ticonderoga,  38. 

Poth,  Captain,  43. 

Potter,  General  James,  244,  253,  257, 
258.     See  Porter,  93. 

Potts,  John  M.,  166. 

Potts,  Samuel,  166. 

PresquHsle,  Wayne  visits,  343. 

Price,  Major,  331. 

Prior,  Captain  Abner,  333. 

Proctor,  Colonel  Thomas,  77;  at  Bran- 
dywine,  78. 

Province  Island,  Wayne  proposes  to 
attack,  103,  105. 

Pulaski,  General,  131,  132. 

Putnam,  Colonel  Rufus,  commands  in 
Light  Infantry  Corps,  180;  men- 
tioned, 184,  185,  190,  214,215. 

Q. 

Quebec,  capture  of,  compared  to  that  of 

Stony  Point,  202. 
Quebec  Act,  provisions  of,  26. 

R. 

Rawlins,  Captain,  333. 
Ray   (Rhea),   Major    David,  at  Three 
Rivers,  30. 


Recruiting,  42 ;  difficulty  of,  123,  125. 

Red  Bank,  102;  attacked,  103. 

Reed,  General  Joseph,  157,  217,  223, 
244,  257,  258;  proposes  to  strike  at 
New  York  in  1778,  133;  letter  of 
Wayne  to,  on  clothing  of  officers, 
162;  reply  to,  164;  letter  of  Wayne 
to,  on  clothing,  etc.,  177;  to  Wayne 
on  capture  of  Stony  Point,  200;  to 
Wayne  on  attack  on  block-house  at 
Bergen,  220;  letter  from  General 
Wayne  to,  on  military  movements, 
227;  letter  from  Wayne  to,  on 
mutiny  in  Pennsylvania  line,  255; 
letter  to  the  mutineers,  259;  Wayne 
to,  on  Stony  Point,  406. 

Reed,  Mrs.  Joseph,  aids  the  soldiers, 
241. 

Rhea.     See  Ray. 

Rhode  Island,  expedition  against,  155, 
I56. 

Richardson's  Ford,  84. 

Rifle  not  a  fit  weapon  for  the  field,  65. 

Robinson,  Mr.,  74. 

Robinson,  Ab'm,  letter  of,  to  Wayne, 
on  visit  of  British  to  his  house,  92. 

Robinson,  Major  and  Colonel  Thomas, 
18,  31,  44,  45,  48,  55;  wounded  at 
Brandywine,  79;  mentioned,  102, 
159,  192. 

Rochambeau,  General,  marches  to 
Yorktown,  277. 

Rodney,  Sir  George,  arrival  of,  227. 

Roman,  Captain  Bernard,  47. 

Ross,  David,  238. 

Round  O,  South  Carolina,  General 
Greene  at,  286. 

Rush,  Dr.  Benjamin,  47;  letter  of, 
to  Wayne  on  affairs  in  Canada  and 
politics  in  Pennsylvania,  1776,  39; 
Wayne's  letter  to,  on  military  affairs 
at  Ticonderoga,  1776, 41 ;  letter  of,  to 
Wayne  on  politics  in  Pennsylvania  in 
1776,  68,  69;  Wayne's  reply,  70;  to 


29 


434 


INDEX. 


Wayne  on  capture  of   Stony  Point, 
200;  letter  of,  to  Wayne  urging  his 
return  to  Pennsylvania,  300 ;  Wayne's 
reply  to,  301. 
Ryan,  Major,  102. 

S. 

St.  Clair,  General  Arthur,  25,  33,  37, 
38,  39.  40,  44. 48, 173. 176,  233,  234, 
247 ,  263,  286 ;  at  Three  Rivers,  29, 
30,  31 ;  in  command  at  Ticonderoga, 
61 ;  mentioned,  68,  70,  71 ;  evacuates 
Ticonderoga,  72;  service  of,  167; 
Wayne  on,  168,  169;  commands 
Pennsylvania  line,  170;  Wayne  on 
capture  of  Stony  Point,  199;  arrives 
too  late  to  take  part  in  siege  of  York- 
town,  282;  governor  of  Northwest 
Territory,  318;  commands  an  expe- 
dition against  the  Indians,  319;  is 
defeated,  319. 

Saint-Mame,  General,  281,  282. 

St.  Sebastian,  siege  of,  204. 

Saint-Simon,  Marquis  de,  arrives  at 
Hampton  Roads,  278. 

Savage,  Captain,  274. 

Savannah,  expedition  against,  156; 
Wayne  attempts  the  reduction  of, 
289;  evacuation  of,  291. 

Schuyler,  General  Philip,  S3*  5°;  tet- 
ter of  Wayne  to,  on  affairs  at  Ticon- 
deroga in  1777,  47,  48;  letter  of 
Wayne  to,  on  a  mutiny  at  Ticonde- 
roga, 55;  to  Wayne  on  capture  of 
Stony  Point,  199. 

Scotch-Irish,  Pennsylvania  line  largely 
composed  of,  248. 

Scott,  General  Charles,  93 ;  joins 
Wayne,  330,  332. 

Shannon,  Mr.,  mismanages  Wayne's 
business,  15;  agent  of,  352. 

Shee,  Colonel  John,  resignation  of,  45. 

Sheel,  Hugh  A.,  letter  of  Wayne  to, 
concerning  Arnold's    treason,    235; 


letter  from,  to  Wayne  on  same  sub- 
ject, 237 ;  note  regarding,  238. 

Sherman,  Colonel  Isaac,  good  conduct 
at  Stony  Point,  404;  letter  of,  to 
Wayne  on  capture  of  Stony  Point, 
408,  412,  415. 

Simcoe's  dragoons,  145. 

Simons,  Colonel,  48. 

Simpson,  Lieutenant  Michael,  78. 

Skinner,  Dr.,  237,  238. 

Slough,  Captain  Jacob,  333. 

Smallwood,  General  William,  failed  to 
join  Wayne  at  Paoli,  83,  84,  87,  90, 

9h  93- 
Smiley,  Samuel,  350. 
Smith,  Lieutenant-Colonel,  102. 
Smith,  Elizabeth,  wife  of  Isaac  Wayne, 

370. 
Smith,  Joshua  Hett,  234. 
Smith,  Lieutenant  Peter,  arrested,  171, 

172,  173- 

Smith,  Lieutenant  William,  333. 

Soldiers  of  the  Revolution,  motives  of, 
compared  with  those  of  Europe,  205. 

Sorel,  The,  28. 

Specie,  need  of,  to  pay  the  army,  217. 

Spencer,  Sergeant,  403. 

Springfield,  New  Jersey,  burned  by  the 
British,  216. 

Springsteel,  Mr.,  near  Stony  Point, 
208. 

Steuben,  Baron  William  von,  129,  201, 
202,282;  challenges  Lee,  15 1;  fear 
of  a  dissolution  of  the  army  if  not 
paid,  217. 

Steward,  Major  Jack,  at  Stony  Point, 
191  ;  thanked  by  Congress,  198,  209, 
405 ;  description  of  medal  presented 
to,  417- 

Stewart,  Colonel  Walter,  62,  80,  152, 
159,  160,  233,  242,  243,  267,  283, 
286 ;  letter  of,  to  Wayne  on  society  in 
Philadelphia,  quoted,  161 ;  Washing- 
ton approves  of  conduct  of,  253 ;  let- 


INDEX. 


435 


ter  of,  to  the  officers,  255;  letter 
from,  to  Wayne  on  condition  of  the 
army,  284. 

Stirling,  Colonel  (British),  131,  132. 

Stirling,  General  William,  Lord,  133, 

363- 

Stoddart,  Captain,  86. 

Stony  Point  occupied  by  the  British, 
155;  address  to  officers  on,  181 ; 
chapter  on  capture  of,  182;  descrip- 
tion of,  183;  reconnoitred  by  Wayne 
and  Butler,  186;  Wayne  thinks  it  too 
strong  to  storm,  186;  could  be  sur- 
prised, 187  ;  attack  on,  193;  capture, 
196;  congratulations  on  capture  of, 
pour  in  upon  Wayne,  197  ;  Washing- 
ton congratulates  the  army  on  capture 
of,  198 ;  capture  of,  compared  to  that 
of  Quebec,  202;  mentioned,  360; 
documents  relating  to,  396 ;  order  of 
battle  for  attack  on,  401. 

Stuart,  Colonel,  233. 

Stuart,  Major  Christopher,  159. 

Sullivan,  General  John,  31,  32,  39,  80; 
at  the  Sorel,  28 ;  attempt  to  cut  off 
his  command,  64;  at  Brandy  wine,  77; 
at  Germantown,  94,  95;  expedition 
to  Rhode  Island  under,  155,  156. 

Sun&ury,  Pennsylvania,  suggested  as  a 
place  for  military  stores,  134. 


Talbot,  Major  Jeremiah,  159. 

Taylor,  Major,  102. 

Tea  destroyed  in  Boston  Harbor,  12; 

conduct  of  Bostonians  not  universally 

approved,  12. 
Temple,  Colonel,  86. 
Test   Laws,   Wayne's   efforts    to   have 

them  repealed,  305  ;  described,  305- 

307. 

Test  Oath,  effect  of  the,  304,  307 ;  word- 
ing of  the,  305. 


Thomas,  Colonel,  17. 

Thompson,  General  and  Colonel  Wil- 
liam, 25,  28,  33,  68 ;  at  Three  Rivers, 
29»  30;  taken  prisoner,  31. 

Three  Rivers,  Americans  attack  the 
British  at,  28;  Wayne's  account  of 
the  engagement  at,  29;   mentioned, 

37.  39- 

Ticonderoga,  33 ;  unhealthiness  of,  34 ; 
Wayne  at,  35 ;  affairs  at,  in  1776,  35, 
36,  37,  38,  41,42;  low  temperature 
at,  in  December,  1776,  45 ;  affairs  at, 
in  1777,  49,  52,  55;  commanded  by 
St.  Clair,  61 ;  evacuated,  72. 

Todd,  Brigadier-General,  331,  332. 

Tolbert,  Samuel,  102  ;  mortally 
wounded,  242. 

Towles,  Lieutenant  Henry  B.,  death 
of,  333- 

Treaty  of  Greeneville,  338. 

Trumbull,  Colonel  John,  70,  72. 


U. 

Uniform,  Wayne  on  the  importance  of, 

24. 
Uniforms,  Pennsylvania  troops  in  need 

of,  64. 


Valley  Forge,  Wayne  at,  1 14 ;  sufferings 
at,  caused  by  incapacity,  1 15  ;  suffer- 
ing at,  130,  138. 
Van  Berkle,  P.  I.,  Wayne  applies  to,  for 

a  loan,  309. 
Van  Renselaer,  Solomon,  333. 
Varnum,  General  James  M.,  133. 
Vernon,  Major  Frederick,  102,  159. 
Vernon,  Job,  18. 
Verplanck's    Point    occupied    by    the 

British,  182;  works  at,  186. 
Virginia,  campaign  in,  263. 
Vose,  Colonel,  273. 


43^ 


INDEX. 


W. 

Wallace,  John,  44. 

Warner,  Colonel,  48. 

Warren  Tavern,  82. 

Washington,  Wayne's  desire  to  join,  36 ; 
condition  of  his  army  in  spring,  1777, 
62 ;  at  Middlebrook,  63 ;  strength  of 
his  position  at  Middlebrook,  71 ; 
orders  Wayne  to  Chester  County,  73 ; 
letter  to,  from  Wayne,  advising  an 
attack  on  the  British  in  Delaware,  75  ; 
letter  of  Wayne  to,  regarding  attack 
at  Paoli,  83 ;  recrosses  the  Schuylkill 
after  the  battle  of  Brandywine,  81 ; 
prepares  to  attack  Howe  near  theWar- 
ren  Tavern,  81 ;  letters  of  Wayne  to, 
on  Paoli  affair,  84 ;  letter  of,  to  Wayne 
from  Potts  Grove,  September  23, 1777, 
91 ;  to  Congress,  regarding  Fort 
Mifflin,  104;  letters  of  Wayne  to,  on 
proposed  attack  on  Philadelphia,  109, 
HO,  III;  letter  of,  to  Wayne  on  a 
winter  campaign,  1 1 1 ;  reply  to,  1 1 1 ; 
letter  of  Wayne  to,  on  collecting 
forage  in  New  Jersey,  131 ;  letter  of 
Wayne  to,  urges  an  attack  on  New 
York,  134;  does  not  approve  of  an 
attack  on  Philadelphia,  136;  crosses 
the  Delaware  in  pursuit  of  Clinton, 
141 ;  determines  to  attack  Clinton, 
142;  letter  of  Wayne  to,  regarding 
attacking  Clinton  before  the  battle  of 
Monmouth,  143;  mentions  Wayne's 
conduct  at  Monmouth  to  Congress, 
149;  letter  of,  quoted,  on  society 
in  Philadelphia,  160;  grants  Wayne 
leave  of  absence,  169;  anxiety  of,  to 
have  Stony  Point  attacked,  183 ;  letter 
to,  from  Wayne,  on  Stony  Point,  186 ; 
to  Wayne,  on  same,  187;  Wayne  to, 
on  capture  of  Stony  Point,  196;  con- 
gratulates the  army  on  capture  of 
Stony  Point,  198;  official  report  of 
Wayne  to,  on  capture  of  Stony  Point, 


208;  wishes  Wayne  to  resume  his 
command  in  Pennsylvania  line,  215; 
to  Hon.  Joseph  Jones  on  sacrifices  of 
the  officers  of  the  army,  217;  letter 
of  Wayne  to,  opposing  a  Canadian 
campaign  and  favoring  an  attack  on 
New  York,  224 ;  letter  from  Wayne 
and  Irvine  to,  concerning  the  appoint- 
ment of  Macpherson,  230,  231 ;  letter 
of  Wayne  to,  concerning  the  move  to 
West  Point,  235  ;  letter  from  Wayne 
to,  regarding  the  mutiny  among  his 
soldiers,  242;  letter  to  Wayne  con- 
cerning the  mutiny  in  the  Pennsyl- 
vania line,  252;  letter  from  Wayne 
to,  on  reorganization  of  Pennsylvania 
line,  260;  letter  from,  to  Wayne  re- 
garding the  mutiny,  261 ,  262 ;  crosses 
the  Hudson  on  his  march  to  York- 
town,  277;  success  of  his  plans  at 
Yorktown,  278;  reaches  Williams- 
burg, 281 ;  letter  of  Wayne  to,  on 
arming  his  officers,  396 ;  on  attacking 
Stony  Point,  399 ;  letters  of,  to  Wayne 
on  attack  of  Stony  Point,  397,400; 
official  report  of,  on  Stony  Point,  404. 
Wayne,  Major  -  General  Anthony, 
the  memory  of,  cherished  as  of  a 
popular  idol,  I ;  the  sobriquet  of 
"  Mad  Anthony"  ill  applied,  1 ;  gen- 
eral impression  regarding,  2 ;  trusted 
by  Washington,  3 ;  of  English  origin, 
4;  immediate  ancestors  came  from 
Ireland,  4, — not  Scotch-Irish,  5  ;  his 
grandfather  settles  in  Chester  County, 
Pennsylvania,  5;  his  father,  Isaac 
Wayne,  5  ;  birth  of,  6 ;  taught  by  his 
uncle  Gilbert,  6;  fondness  for  play- 
ing soldier,  6;  sent  to  the  Academy 
of  Philadelphia,  7;  becomes  a  sur- 
veyor, 7;  sent  to  Nova  Scotia  by 
Franklin  and  others,  8  ;  interested  in 
lands  there,  9 ;  returns  to  Pennsylva- 
nia and  marries,  IO;  chosen   to   fill 


INDEX. 


437 


county  offices,  10 ;  death  of  his  father, 
1 1 ;  organizes  a  regiment,  1 1 ;  a 
leader  in  public  affairs  in  Chester 
County  at  the  beginning  of  the  Rev- 
olution, 14;  member  of  numerous 
committees  and  conventions,  14;  re- 
cruits a  regiment  for  Continental  ser- 
vice, 15;  characteristics  of,  15;  van- 
ity of,  16;  many  of  his  early  officers 
rise  to  distinction,  18;  as  chairman 
of  the  committee  of  Chester  County 
he  asserts  that  independence  is  not 
the  object  of  the  war,  21 ;  "  Mad 
Anthony"  a  law-abiding  citizen,  22 ; 
he  prepares  his  regiment  for  active 
service,  22;  a  strict  disciplinarian, 
23;  studies  Marshal  Saxe  and 
Caesar's  Commentaries,  23;  in  favor 
of  an  elegant  uniform,  24;  takes  part 
in  the  Canadian  campaign,  25;  his 
regiment  arrives  at  the  Sorel,  28; 
fights  the  battle  of  Three  Rivers,  29- 
31 ;  coolness  of,  32;  is  placed  in 
command  of  Ticonderoga,  33;  letters 
from  that  post  in  1776-77,  35—55 ; 
thinks  his  regiment  the  finest  in  the 
service,  35  ;  expects  to  be  ordered  to 
join  "Washington,  36;  in  possession 
of  Montcalm's  lines,  37  ;  postal  com- 
munication established  by  Massachu- 
setts with  Ticonderoga,  38 ;  on  polit- 
ical condition  of  Pennsylvania  in 
1776,  41 ;  urges  a  closer  attention  to 
military  affairs,  41 ;  on  cold  weather 
at  Ticonderoga,  45  ;  wishes  for  news 
about  fall  of  Fort  Washington,  45 ; 
on  affairs  in  New  Jersey,  46;  on 
condition  at  Ticonderoga,  47-49;  is 
appointed  brigadier-general,  50;  to 
George  Clymer  on  sickness  at  Ticon- 
deroga, 52;  suppresses  a  mutiny  at 
Ticonderoga,  55;  ordered  to  join 
Washington  at  Morristown,  60;  mag- 
nanimity of,  about   rank,  61 ;    com- 


mands the  Pennsylvania  line,  62 ; 
outgenerals  Grant  near  Brunswick, 
64,  65 ;  described  by  Gray  don,  66 ; 
receives  letters  on  politics  in  Penn- 
sylvania, 68,  69;  his  reply  to  Rush 
urging  attention  to  military  affairs, 
7 1 ;  ordered  to  Chester  County  to 
arrange  the  militia,  73;  rejoins  the 
army,  74 ;  takes  post  near  Wilming- 
ton, 74;  advises  Washington  to  at- 
tack the  British  while  in  Delaware, 
75;  takes  part  in  battle  of  Brandy- 
wine,  77 ;  attacked  at  Paoli,  82 ;  his 
letter  to  Washington  on  that  subject, 
83 ;  demands  a  court  of  inquiry,  84 ; 
his  defence,  85;  acquitted,  88;  his 
house  surrounded  by  the  British,  92 ; 
favors  an  attack  at  Germantown,  93 ; 
takes  part  in  the  battle  of  German- 
town,  95 ;  forbids  his  servant's  being 
sent  to  market,  97 ;  recapitulation  of 
his  services  at  Brandywine,  Paoli,  and 
Germantown,  98;  his  officers,  100; 
urges  an  attack  on  Province  Island  to 
relieve  Fort  Mifflin,  103,  105;  his 
opinion  of  a  council  of  war,  106; 
endeavors  to  bring  about  an  active 
campaign,  107;  urges  that  an  at- 
tempt be  made  to  draw  the  British 
out  of  Philadelphia,  no;  not  in  favor 
of  a  winter  campaign,  112;  his  voice 
still  for  war,  113;  shocked  at  the 
intrigues  of  the  Conway  Cabal,  1 14 ; 
at  Valley  Forge,  114;  his  letters  re- 
garding clothing  for  his  troops,  116, 
117, 118, 120, 121,  127;  wishes  bayo- 
nets for  his  men,  1 1 8 ;  his  high  opinion 
of  that  weapon,  118;  on  recruiting, 
124,  125;  difficulty  of  keeping  offi- 
cers from  resigning,  128 ;  his  claim 
for  teaching  the  use  of  the  bayonet, 
1 30;  his  zeal  in  foraging  gains  him 
the  sobriquet  of  "  Drover  Wayne," 
130;  is  sent  to  New  Jersey  to  collect 


43« 


INDEX. 


stores,  1 30 ;  letter  to  Washington  re- 
garding the  expedition,  131 ;  in  favor 
of  making  Sunbury  a  dep6t  of  sup- 
plies and  attacking  New  York,  134; 
not  in  favor  of  attacking  the  enemy 
in  Philadelphia,  136;  wishes  to  at- 
tack them  if  they  march  through 
New  Jersey,  137 ;  on  the  French  al- 
liance, 137;  regrets  that  so  many 
officers  are  resigning,  138,  140;  on 
the  sufferings  of  the  army,  138;  on 
the  affair  at  Barren  Hill,  139;  thinks 
Clinton  will  offer  battle  before  quit- 
ting Pennsylvania,  139;  while  at 
Hopewell  urges  that  Clinton  be  at- 
tacked, 142,  143;  at  the  battle  of 
Monmouth,  144;  regrets  Major  Lee 
was  not  present,  145 ;  repulses  Col- 
onel Monckton,  147 ;  his  conduct  at 
Monmouth  mentioned  by  Washing- 
ton, 149;  his  example,  150;  chal- 
lenges General  Lee,  151 ;  his  letter 
to  his  wife  describing  the  battle,  152; 
his  message  to  the  ladies  of  the 
Meschianza,  154;  once  more  appeals 
for  clothing,  156;  on  the  number  of 
Pennsylvania  troops  in  the  field,  157  ; 
sends  two  of  his  officers  to  appeal 
to  the  Pennsylvania  Assembly,  160; 
letter  to  Reed  on  need  of  clothing 
for  officers,  162;  turns  to  Robert 
Morris,  164;  wishes  to  quit  the  army, 
164;  urged  to  visit  Pennsylvania, 
166;  his  officers  threaten  to  resign  on 
account  of  rank,  166;  on  St.  Clair, 
168;  asks  to  command  a  Light  In- 
fantry Corps,  169;  surrenders  com- 
mand of  Pennsylvania  line  to  St. 
Clair,  170;  sympathizes  with  his  col- 
onels, 170;  orders  officers  under  ar- 
rest for  exceeding  military  authority, 
171 ;  tries  to  settle  difficulty  caused 
by  Macpherson's  appointment,  174; 
addressed  by  officers  of  Pennsylvania 


line,  178;  commands  Light  Infantry 
Corps,  180;  his  officers  in  that  corps, 
180;  address  to  his  men  on  assault 
on  Stony  Point,  181 ;  reprimands  the 
commissary  department,  184  ;  recon- 
noitres Stony  Point,  185 ;  report  on 
reconnoissance,  186;  receives  Wash- 
ington's plan  for  attack,  187;  im- 
proves the  same,  189;  prepares  to 
attack  Stony  Point,  191 ;  letter  to 
Delany  to  be  delivered  in  case  of 
his  death,  192;  attacks  the  fort,  194; 
is  wounded,  195;  carries  the  fort, 
195;  despatch  to  Washington,  196; 
congratulations  received  by,  197 ; 
the  value  of  the  exploit,  201 ;  its 
place  in  history,  202 ;  how  he  gained 
the  sobriquet  of  "  Mad  Anthony," 
207 ;  report  of,  to  Washington  on 
capture  of  Stony  Point,  208 ;  on  the 
neglect  of  the  Light  Infantry  Corps, 
212;  addresses  to,  from  officers  of 
Light  Infantry  Corps  on  its  disband- 
ment,  213,  214;  his  reply,  215;  re- 
sumes command  in  Pennsylvania  line, 
216;  proposes  that  specie  be  bor- 
rowed from  France  to  pay  the  troops, 
217;  makes  an  attack  on  a  block- 
house at  Bergen,  218;  his  letter  to 
Reed  regarding,  219;  Reed's  reply, 
220 ;  proposes  surprising  New  York, 
223;  opposed  to  a  Canadian  cam- 
paign, 224;  letter  to  Reed  on  mili- 
tary affairs,  227 ;  endeavors  to  allay 
discontent  among  his  officers  regard- 
ing Macpherson,  229;  his  prompt 
movement  on  learning  of  Arnold's 
treason,  233;  on  Arnold,  236;  fears 
trouble  on  the  expiration  of  three-year 
enlistments,  240;  endeavors  to  keep 
the  men  under  control,  241 ;  his 
troops  mutiny,  242;  his  efforts  to 
suppress  the  same,  242;  his  corre- 
spondence and  that  of  others  on  the 


INDEX. 


439 


subject,  242-262;  numbers  of  his 
men  re-enlist  under  him,  264 ;  or- 
dered to  command  a  detachment  of 
the  Pennsylvania  line,  264 ;  report  on 
condition  of  affairs  at  York,  Penn- 
sylvania, 265;  suppresses  a  mutiny 
at  York,  265;  ordered  to  reinforce 
La  Fayette  in  Virginia,  266;  is  di- 
rected by  La  Fayette  to  move  to 
Green  Spring,  269;  engagement  at, 
270 ;  receives  the  approval  of  Wash- 
ington and  Greene  for  his  conduct  at, 
271;  engages  the  British  at  Green 
Spring,  Virginia,  near  Ambler's  plan- 
tation, 273;  complimented  by  La 
Fayette,  274;  care  of  his  wounded 
officers,  275;  ordered  to  cross  the 
James  at  Westover,  276;  fears  the 
French  will  not  co-operate  with 
the  Americans  at  Yorktown,  279; 
wounded  by  a  sentry,  280 ;  welcomes 
the  French  officers  under  M.  de 
Saint-Mame,  281 ;  takes  part  in  the 
siege  of  Yorktown,  282;  fears  that 
the  victory  at  Yorktown  will  not  be 
sufficiently  improved,  283 ;  letter  to, 
from  Colonel  Stewart  on  surrender 
of  Cornwallis,  284;  letter  to,  from 
Rev.  David  Jones,  285;  ordered  to 
Georgia,  286 ;  joins  General  Greene, 
286;  receives  a  plantation  from  the 
State  of  Georgia,  287 ;  issues  procla- 
mation to  citizens  of  Georgia,  287 ; 
his  force  in  that  State,  287 ;  separated 
from  the  Pennsylvania  line,  288; 
asks  that  one  battalion  of  same  be 
sent  to  him,  288;  proceeds  against 
Savannah,  288;  attempt  to  surprise 
his  camp  by  Creek  Indians,  290 ;  re- 
sult of  his  campaign  in  Georgia, 
291 ;  Georgia  shows  her  gratitude  to, 
292;  sent  to  aid  in  the  reduction 
of  Charleston,  292;  General  Greene 
congratulates,   293;    letter  to,  from 


General  Greene,  293;  is  stricken 
with  fever,  293 ;  negotiates  treaty  with 
the  Creek  and  Cherokee  Indians, 
294 ;  is  made  major-general  by  brevet, 
294;  makes  no  complaint  of  want 
of  proper  recognition  of  his  services, 
295 ;  letter  to,  from  General  Irvine 
on  the  jealousy  of  the  Cincinnati, 
296 ;  his  reply  to  same,  296 ;  is 
elected  president  of  Georgia  Society 
of  the  Cincinnati,  297 ;  a  portion  of 
his  command  offer  their  services  to 
quell  a  riot  in  1783,  298;  on  the  dis- 
bandment  of  the  army,  299;  in  civil 
life,  300;  too  ill  to  be  present  at 
Washington's  farewell  to  the  army, 
300 ;  receives  letter  from  Dr.  Rush 
urging  his  return  to  Pennsylvania, 
300;  replies  to  same,  301;  report 
that  he  is  to  settle  in  Georgia,  301 ; 
elected  a  member  of  the  Council  of 
Censors,  302 ;  elected  to  the  Assem- 
bly, 303  ;  advocates  the  repeal  of  all 
test-laws,  304;  member  of  Constitu- 
tional Convention  of  1787,  308;  cul- 
tivates his  estates  in  Pennsylvania 
and  Georgia,  309;  borrows  money 
for  the  purchase  of  slaves,  309 ;  in 
financial  difficulties,  311  ;  returned 
a  member  of  Congress  from  Geor- 
gia. 3I3>  his  election  set  aside, 
314;  appointed  by  Washington  com- 
mander-in-chief of  the  army,  315; 
commands  an  expedition  against  the 
Western  Indians,  321 ;  his  plan  for 
securing  the  settlements  on  the  Ohio, 
324;  organizes  the  Legion,  324; 
asks  for  flags  for  the  Legion,  324; 
moves  his  camp  to  Fort  Washington, 
325;  orders  to,  from  Secretary  of 
War,  325 ;  sends  to  Kentucky  for 
mounted  volunteers,  325 ;  disregards 
the  suggestions  of  the  Secretary  of 
War  and  marches  against  the  Indians, 


44Q 


INDEX. 


326,  327 ;  arrives  at  Greeneville, 
327 ;  his  soldiers  inter  the  bones  of 
those  who  fell  under  St.  Clair,  328 ; 
erects  Fort  Recovery,  328 ;  his  con- 
duct approved  by  Washington,  329 ; 
sole  conduct  of  the  war  confided  to 
him,  329;  repulses  the  Indians  at 
Fort  Recovery,  330;  is  joined  by 
Kentucky  volunteers  under  Scott, 
330;  builds  Fort  Defiance,  330; 
sends  last  overtures  of  peace  to  the 
Indians,  330 ;  his  account  of  the  vic- 
tory over  the  Indians  on  the  Miami, 
331 ;  suffering  from  the  gout  at  the 
time  of  the  battle,  334;  correspond- 
ence with  the  English  commander, 
Major  Campbell,  335 ;  sends  a  portion 
of  his  troops  to  Fort  Massac,  336; 
prevents  threatened  hostilities  with 
Spain,  336 ;  estimate  of  the  value  of 
his  victory  over  the  Miamies,  337; 
he  opens  the  West  to  emigration, 
337 ;  influence  of  his  victory  on  our 
relations  with  England,  339 ;  his  tri- 
umphal return  to  Pennsylvania,  339 ; 
the  House  of  Representatives  refuse 
to  recognize  his  services,  but  thank 
his  soldiers,  340 ;  is  again  sent  West, 
to  receive  the  surrender  of  the  British 
posts,  342 ;  is  received  with  courtesy 
by  the  British  commanders,  342 ;  at 
Detroit,  343 ;  leaves  Detroit  for 
Presqu'isle,  343;  is  taken  ill,  343; 
death  of,  343 ;  his  remains  are  brought 
to  Chester  County,  Pennsylvania,  by 
his  son,  344 ;  is  buried  at  St.  David's 
Church,  Radnor,  Pennsylvania,  344 ; 
inscription  on  his  monument,  345; 
estimate  of  his  character  and  achieve- 
ments, 346-348;  a  sufferer  from  the 
gout,  349;  supplementary  chapter, 
with  general  view  of  his  life,  by 
Hon.  Joseph  J.  Lewis,  339 ;  an  ac- 
count of  the  erection  of  a  monument 


over  his  remains,  350;  inherits  a 
property  from  his  father,  352;  loses 
money  as  a  tanner,  352;  borrows 
money  for  his  Georgia  estate,  353; 
executes  his  will,  353 ;  disregards  the 
acquisition  of  property,  354;  claim 
against,  by  the  government,  355; 
a  counter-claim  established  and  paid, 
355  ;  sobriquet  of  "  Mad  Anthony" 
applied  to,  356,  360,  363,  364;  at 
Green  Springs,  357 ;  his  conduct  in 
Georgia,  358;  conduct  at  Stony 
Point,  359;  Washington  Irving  on, 
356,  359,  361 ;  estimate  of  his  ser- 
vices in  the  Revolution,  359 ;  anec- 
dote regarding  his  willingness  to 
fight,  361  j  in  favor  of  attacking 
Clinton  at  Monmouth,  362;  favors 
attacking  the  British  in  Philadelphia, 
363 ;  an  insult  to  his  memory  re- 
sented, 364;  general  characteristics 
of,  365,  366 ;  his  opinion  of  Arnold 
and  of  Lee,  366;  sketch  of  his  son 
Isaac,  370 ;  descendants  of,  373  ;  di- 
vision orders  of  December  20,  1777, 
374;  correspondence  of,  regarding 
Stony  Point,  395 ;  on  arming  the 
officers  of  the  Light  Infantry  Corps, 
395 ;  supplementary  report  of,  to  Con- 
gress on  Stony  Point,  402  ;  description 
of  medal  presented  to,  415. 

Wayne,  Gilbert,  6. 

Wayne,  Isaac,  father  of  General  Wayne, 
5,6;  removes  the  remains  of  General 
Wayne  to  Chester  County,  344,  354; 
recovers  claim  against  the  govern- 
ment, 355;  sketch  of,  370;  children 

of,  373. 

Wayne,  Margaretta,  354. 

Wayne,  Mary,  letters  of  General  Wayne 
to,  from  Ticonderoga,  35 ;  letter  to, 
from  General  Wayne,  June  7,  1777, 
66;  letter  to,  from  General  Wayne 
asking  her  to  visit  camp,  74 ;  letters 


INDEX. 


441 


to,  from  General  Wayne  on  British 

Williams,  Major,  wounded  and  taken 

possession   of   Philadelphia,  93 ;    on 

prisoner,  100. 

battle  of  Germantown,  95 ;  letter  to, 

Williams,  Lieutenant-Colonel  William, 

from   General   Wayne   on  battle   of 

159,  179- 

Monmouth,  152. 

Williamsburg  evacuated  by  the  British , 

Waynesborough,  Chester   County,  Pa., 

*73> 

home  of  the  Waynes,  5. 

Willis,  Major,  269,  274. 

Webb,  Lieutenant  John,  333. 

Wilson,  James,  166. 

Weedon,  General  George,  at  Brandy- 

Winter  campaign,  Wayne  opposed  to 

wine,  78. 

one  in  1777-78,  ill. 

Werts,  Major,  121. 

Wolfe,  General  James,  and  capture  of 

Westover,  Virginia,  Wayne  at,  276. 

Quebec    compared    to    Wayne    and 

Wharton,  Robert,  350. 

Stony  Point,  202 ;  the  treatment  his 

Wharton,  Thomas,  president  of  Penn- 

memory has  received  compared  with 

sylvania,   letters   of    Wayne    to,  on 

Wayne's,  346. 

clothing,  etc.,  120;  letter  of  Wayne 

Wood,  Colonel  Joseph,  39. 

to,  on  recruiting  and  clothing,  125; 

Wright,  Major,  172. 

letter  of,  to  Wayne    on  recruiting, 

Wright,   Sir  James,  rice-plantation  of, 

126. 

presented   to  General   Wayne,   287,. 

Whitcomb,  Colonel  John,  47. 

310. 

White,  Lieutenant,  mortally  wounded, 

Y. 

242. 

Yorktown,  Virginia,   Cornwallis  takes 

Wilcocks, ,  310. 

position  at,  277 ;  French  forces  arrive 

Wilkinson,  General  James,  31,  333. 

at,  278. 

Will  of  General  Wayne,  354. 

Young,  Dr.,  68. 

THE    END. 


L-i* 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 
This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below. 


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